


A New Light: Coral Year

by natsuki5381



Category: Mai-HiME, Mai-Otome
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-13
Updated: 2018-12-10
Packaged: 2019-08-22 17:19:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 30,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16602275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natsuki5381/pseuds/natsuki5381
Summary: Aishu has now taken the Kruger last name. At 14, she is attending Garderobe, and as Coral Number 2! Many new things are in store for her including a new best friend, her very own Shizuru, and a secret about herself she wasn't even aware of. Can Natsuki and Shizuru handle the new challenges they face not only as parents, but as Otome? Book Two of A New Light Series.





	1. Chapter One

Chapter One

It was a beautiful Monday morning, the smell of spring dancing in the breeze. With the sky clear, the sun was able to share its gentle warmth with the flowers below. Many trees were just beginning to bud, but there were a few cherry blossoms already in early bloom. New life was also in bloom with the animals as well, curious younglings sniffing through the grass. It was perfect weather for the last day of Spring break. However, for a certain fourteen-year-old brunette, enjoying what the weather had to offer was the last thing on her list.

"This can go in here, and this…this can go over there."

Aishu had spent most of her day getting settled into her new dorm, doing anything she had to in preparation for the new school year. She had already hung up her uniforms, unpacked her extra clothing, and even set up supplies on her new desk. Now, she was finished, and after folding the last of her pajamas into her drawer, she flopped back onto her bed and let out a sigh.

"Finally."

            It was time for a breather.

" _Ne, I wonder what my parents are doing,_ " she asked herself, letting out a yawn and a stretch. With being busy all day, she hardly got a chance to see them. Though, with the new semester ready to start, they were probably busy, too. She would have to make a point to visit before turning in for the night.

With her parents on her mind, Aishu reached up and touched her ear, rubbing her finger over the new coral gem they had given her the day before. Although offered a chance to apply when she was first adopted, she had waited almost four years before doing so, wanting to just spend time with her family as much as she could. However, that did not mean that she wasn't interested. She could remember the countless days where she would run back to Garderobe as soon as her middle school was out just to watch the Otome practice in the fields. She wasn't allowed to observe any of the other classes because she wasn't an official student, but as long as she was out of the way, she could watch them fight. Sometimes, Mai and her parents would accompany her and explain the techniques some of the students used, Aishu eagerly taking in anything she could. Last year, when she had mentioned her interest in applying, Mai became really psyched and wanted to train her, her parents giving all their support as well. Aishu didn't want that though, at least not too much of it. If she was going to get into Garderobe, she wanted to do it on her own. She was very capable of studying and learning what she needed to and didn't want any special help because of who her parents were. Granted, Mai and her parents would help occasionally, but other than that, she did it herself. In the end, the hard work paid off with her starting out as Coral number two, that moment being one of the proudest ones in her life.

Letting out another small yawn, her deep brown orbs flicked to the clock that was on the wall, which read 4:00pm.

"I might be able to catch them before the ceremony," she said quietly. "If I leave now, I-"

Before she had a chance to finish her sentence, she was interrupted by the door being slammed open, causing her to jump at the sound. Looking wide eyed in that direction, she found a pink haired girl standing in the entrance.

"Three minutes and twenty three seconds!"

….

"What?"

The new comer walked in with her suitcase, shutting the door behind her. Casually, she walked over to the opposite bed and tossed her case upon it.

"Three minutes and twenty three seconds. That's how long it took me to run here from the entrance," she replied while fist pumping the air. Aishu could see pure determination flashing in the girl's aqua blue eyes. "Next time, I'll make it in three!"

Walking over now, she stopped inches away from Aishu before extending her hand.

"Coral number one, Hikaru Kokoru!"

Aishu caught Hikaru's hand in a shake.

"C-coral number two, Aishu Kruger."

"Kruger, eh?" She asked, now taking a seat beside the other. "So, you're the kid everyone's been talking about."

"Wait, what?" A small blush crept upon Aishu's face, a look of confusion accompanying it. "People are talking about me? Why?"

"Well, because you're the daughter of the principal and the great Shizuru-Oneesama of course!" She answered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Well, I am," Aishu said back, scratching her head. "But that doesn't really mean anything. I'm no different than any other student."

"Yes you are," Hikaru said back. "Do you know how many people think it's amazing that you're  _their_  daughter? It's a huge thing! Watch, you'll be popular in no time."

"I don't want to be popular," Aishu said softly, her blush growing bigger. "I just want to be like every other kid."

"You know what? I think I'm going to like you." Hikaru told her, throwing a playful punch. "You're not all snobby just because your parents are famous. "

"Well, to be honest Kokoru-san, I-"

"Hikaru-chan."

"Huh?"

"Hi-ka-ru-chan! No need to be so formal."

"Hikaru ch-chan. Well, as I was saying, my parents may be famous, but I don't exactly look at them that way. To me, they're just parents. Sure, it's exciting that they're all famous and all, but even if they weren't, they'd still be the greatest Moms in the world. I'm really no different from anyone else here. Just a girl with two really great parents."

Hikaru's eyes had lit up, her mouth opening as if she was about to say something, but before she could, a voice came on over the intercom.

"Attention all students. We will be assembling in the auditorium for the beginning of the year ceremony in ten minutes. Please plan your time accordingly."

"All right!" Hikaru shouted while standing up and shooting her fist into the air. "I've been waiting all day for this! Come on, Aishu-chan! Let's try to make it before anyone else!"

Before Aishu could get a word out, Hikaru grabbed her by the hand and pulled her out of the room. The two raced through the hallways, down sets of stairs, and past the kitchens before finally reaching their destination.

"Aww man," Hikaru said once they were inside. "We weren't fast enough."

"I thought…we were…pretty fast," Aishu said back with a pant. "Sure, we're not the first ones here, but we were still pretty fast."

"That's the spirit, Ai-chan!" Hikaru replied while slapping Aishu in the back, the brunette letting out a cough. "Always looking on the bright side! Come on, let's go get seats in the front!"

So with that, the two walked down a little path and took a seat in the first row. Looking up on the stage, Aishu spotted the familiar staff she had seen over the years. Mrs. Maria, who was wearing her usual black dress, was in a deep conversation with both of her parents, Youko-sensei, and Yukariko-sensei, someone who was to be her instructor this year. Though they were all chatting, it didn't stop Shizuru from sneaking a peek Aishu and winking, Aishu happily smiling back.

After a few more minutes, all the students had filed in, Natsuki now standing at the podium to speak.

"Before we begin, I would like to congratulate all of you for being here," the principal began, the noise from the audience dying down. "The exams are not an easy thing to go through, but the fact that you all made it here out of the thousands of girls who applied is definitely something to be proud of."

A small round of applause echoed through the room, Natsuki speaking again once it died down.

"As most of you know, I am the principal of this school, Natsuki Kruger. I welcome you all to Garderobe and hope that you will all work hard to obtain your dream of one day being a Meister Otome. A road to becoming one, however, is not easy. You must work long and hard to become the best Otome you can be for your master and for your country. I wish you all the best of luck. With that said, we will now introduce you to your instructors."

For the next half hour or so, different staff members stood up and introduced themselves, each giving a speech on what they taught. Mrs. Maria was the last one to go. After her introduction, she began going over some of the rules and regulations of the school. Aishu, upon sneaking a peek at Hikaru, saw the female sitting upright while listening intently, nodding in agreement to everything she heard. She was definitely a determined one.

"Furthermore, there are other students that you must treat with the same respect as you treat your instructors. They will come up and introduce themselves now."

Four students, Pearl students in fact, stood up from where they were sitting on stage and lined up next to the older woman. Aishu could hear all the other girls getting excited.

"These are the top four Pearl students of our school," Mrs. Maria told them. "You will address them as Oneesama and treat them with the utmost respect. Some of you girls will get lucky enough to become their room attendant later in the year, just remember the responsibility of being one. You must listen and obey every command they give you, and in return, they will help you with your studies as well as spar with you in their free time. "

The woman then backed away, the first pearl replacing her.

"Welcome," she said with a smile. "I am pearl number four, Aiko Tukiyo."

A loud round of applause came after the introduction, along with some cheers from the students. The same reaction came after each pearl introduced themselves. The next three were the top three pearls of the school, also known as the Triage.

"I am Triage number three, Utau Hoshiko"

"I am Triage number two, Rai Murasaki."

Aishu watched in awe as they all gave a small little speech, each seeming so smart and elegant. Although she was already familiar with them, seeing as she had seen them fight in the past, they were still amazing to see. When Aishu got accepted, she promised herself that she would work really hard to become a great Pearl just like them.

After Rai finished her introduction, she stepped away to let the last Pearl speak.

"Hello everyone. I am Triage number one, Hana Michiko."

"Hana Michiko," Aishu whispered, her voice a bit breathless. She had long, thick silver hair and the prettiest set of deep purple eyes Aishu had ever seen. Out of the four Pearls present on the stage, it was Hana she knew the most. Quite often, when Aishu would watch them fight in last year, it was Hana who would come and speak to her, and whenever Hana visited Natsuki's office, she took care to say hello to Aishu, too. Sometimes Hana would come by just to visit with Aishu in her off time.

"I really hope you all do well this year and I wish you luck."

Her honey like voice was just as pretty as her looks, only entrancing the younger female even more. She herself didn't realize just how much in awe she was until she realized Hana had caught her staring, the older girl looking right back.

"I look forward to working with all of you this year and I'll be keeping an eye out for a future room attendant."

In being caught, Aishu blushed and turned away, hoping nobody realized it.

After they had finished, Natsuki stepped back to the podium.

"Now that the introductions are complete, I will bring this meeting to an end. Classes start at eight in the morning, so please get a good night's sleep. You are dismissed."

With that final word, the students stood up and began filing out.

"I'll meet you back at the dorm," Aishu told Hikaru. "I want to see my parents for a few moments."

"Gotcha!" She said back, giving a thumbs up. "See you there!"

Aishu, remaining in her seat, caught the glance of Shizuru once again, the woman already knowing what the girl wanted. She was happy she'd finally be able to see them after a day away.

When everyone else was gone, the two women left the stage and met up with their daughter below.

"Ara! My little Ai-chan looks so cute in her uniform!"

Aishu couldn't help but blush at this statement, hiding her face a little when Shizuru embraced her in a hug.

'Thanks, Mom," she muttered.

"You excited?" Natsuki asked.

"Very!" Aishu replied, slipping away to hug the blunette as well. "I can't wait to start!"

Moments like these, in her mind, were precious, especially now that she would no longer be staying in their living quarters. When she got adopted, she was given a room of her own right near theirs at the school and it was where she stayed when school was in session. This would be her first time staying in the dorms. She could have stayed with her parents, but decided against it because she wanted to be treated like every other student. Still, it hurt a little to be away.

"Ne, I'm happy an all about being in a dorm, but I'm still feeling off about being away. I can still stay with you guys on weekends, right?"

She felt Shizuru sneak up behind her and pull her close.

"Aww, I love how much our Ai-chan loves spending time with us."

Natsuki giggled.

"Of course you can, silly," the blunette replied. "Weekends are free time. You're welcome to stay with us then. Never think you can't come and stay during the week though. Always come by when you want. Okay? You might be a student, but you're still our girl."

Aishu, feeling all warmed up, snuggled closer into Shizuru's embrace with a smile.

"Thanks," she told them. "I will. I love you guys."

"We love you, too, cutie," Shizuru said back.

After a good few minutes of chatting and loving, Aishu let out a tiny yawn.

"Murr, I know it's only six thirty, but I'm really tired. With classes starting tomorrow, I think I'm going to head to bed early. I just really wanted to see you both first."

"All right, sweetheart," Shizuru told her, giving the girl another little squeeze and a kiss before letting go. Aishu found her way to Natsuki's arms and got some loving from her, too.

"Night," she told them.

"Have a good night, love," Natsuki said back.

With that, Aishu walked out, finding her way back to her room. With being so tired, she failed to hear the excited whispers as she traveled down the halls. People really were aware of who she was.

When she reached her dorm, she walked in to find Hikaru already passed out in her bed, the open suitcase at the end of it implying she passed out half way through packing. Little snores escaped the pink haired female, leaving Aishu to giggle a bit.

Not wanting to wake her, she left the lights off, quickly changing into her own pajamas before crawling into bed. As she snuggled closer to her blankets, she thought about the days that were to come. She was confident the year was going to be a great one, and she would do her best to become a great Otome, and with that thought in mind, she fell into a peaceful sleep.

 


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter 2

"Ne, Aishu-chan?"

"Hm?"

The Coral students had just finished with their hour long morning clean up. Now at breakfast, a very hungry Aishu sat across from Hikaru, the girl staring at her with a strange look.

"Um, I'm a little confused. Mayo?"

Aishu, with knife in hand, was happily spreading her favorite condiment onto a piece of toast. Peering up at her friend, she cocked her head at the question.

"What's wrong with it?" She asked. "It's good! You should try it."

"No, I think I'm going to stick with butter," Hikaru replied. "Mayo on toast seems a little unnatural."

It took all of two seconds for Aishu to stick the mayo covered knife near the girl's face.

"Are you doubting the mayo?"

"No! No, I'm not!" Hikaru said while holding her hands up in front of her and leaning back. "If you think mayo is good on toast, that's great! I guess I'm just not a big mayo fan in general."

Aishu retracted her knife and placed it on her plate. Hikaru could only make a face as the other took a big bite of the mayo covered food.

"Just wonderful," Aishu said with a smile. "Mayo, my friend, is good on  _everything_. Even my mom says so! Well, Natsu-kaachan does anyway. Shizu-kaachan isn't too much of a fan. It's such a shame you don't like it much though. You have no idea what you're missing."

Silent now, the girl's continued eating until the bell rang. So far, in their first week of school, classes had been wonderful. There was so much to learn and the two took in every bit of information possible. Today was a little different, however. Instead of regular class work, they would be having their first combat class. Aishu and Hikaru couldn't wait to spar for the first time, so the moment they finished eating, they hurriedly headed out of the building and towards the practice fields.

 

* * *

 

 

"Is it ready?"

Two figures hid among the shadows. One of them was a hooded male with a pointed red gem in hand. The second figure was a woman, her eyes dark as she looked upon the small group of Coral students filling the field.

"Yes, my lady" the male voice answered. "I only await your signal."

The woman let out a frustrated sigh. Launching an attack this early had not been her intention, but her patience was wearing thin. She had already acquired the first object she needed the previous year. Now, she needed to draw out the second one. She doubted that she'd find what she was looking for on her first attack, but she had to try. She couldn't afford to pass up on any open opportunities.

"In fifteen minutes, I will give my mark," she told him. "You will release it then. Do not fail me."

"Very well, " he replied. "I will not fail."

 

* * *

 

 

"Welcome, group one, to your first combat class."

About fifteen girls stood on a grassy field, all staring at themselves in awe at their newly materialized robes.

"Seeing as I don't know much about what skill level you each are at," Yukariko continued. "We will have a series of one on one matches so that I may observe you all in action. This will give me an idea of what we will really need to focus on in future classes. "

Clinging tightly to her staff, Aishu could feel her excitement building as her sensei spoke. After only watching sparring matches in the past, she was ecstatic to be able to take part in one. Granted, she was a little nervous, but with all the physical training she had gone through, she was hoping she wouldn't do too badly.

"Finally, our first sparring match!" Hikaru said with excitement, placing her hand on the brunette's shoulder. "Let's try our best! We just have to remember to keep our eyes open, our weapons at the ready, and to never turn our backs on the opponent, and even if we do screw up, we can't let it get us down! We have to keep pushing on for it's the only way we'll get better."

She threw her fist into the air.

"We can do this, Aishu-chan!"

Aishu giggled at her friend's excitement.

"Yes, Hikaru-chan, we can!"

"Sorry I'm late, Yukariko-sensei! I had to run a quick errand for the principal."

 Aishu turned to see the new comer, gasping and nearly dropping her staff when she realized who it was.

"That's quite all right," Yukariko told the visitor with a smile. "Class, I do believe you have met Triage number one, Hana Michiko, at the ceremony last week. She's offered to join us in class today to help observe and answer any questions you may have."

Aishu, like before, felt her heart jump in her chest. There was just something about Hana that really caught her eye, but she couldn't figure out what. She originally thought that the feeling was a fluke when it hit her during their very first meeting a year before, but no matter how many times she saw Hana, the flutters always returned. What was it about the girl that made her chest feel funny so much?

"Let's observe Coral number two, Aishu Kruger, and Hana-Oneesama in their natural habitat as the two look at each other with a spark in their eyes."

"Wh-what?" stuttered Aishu, snapping back into reality at Hikaru's voice. "The t-two? Spark?"

 It hadn't taken long for the pink haired female to notice how her new friend would get around Hana. Now, she took every opportunity to tease her about it.

"The two," Hikaru pointed. It was then, still in her half daze, did Aishu realize that while staring, Hana, just like at the ceremony, was staring right back, and with a smile on her face.

"Oh jeez!" Aishu quickly turned away and tried to blend in with the rest of her classmates.

"There it is again," Hikaru teased. "That spark!"

"What spark?" Aishu asked with a blush. "There is no spark!"

"There is, too! It showed up as soon as you started staring at her."

"I wasn't staring!"

"You were, I saw it! I know you have a crush on her…"

"What? I do not! We're just friends!"

"That’s what they all say," Hikaru said back. "I can see it now. Aishu-chan and Hana-Oneesama in love. You two would surely make such a cute couple!"

"Hi-Hikaru!"

"All right!" It was Yukariko's voice that shushed the group. "Now when I call your name, please step into the center. Miki Beniko and Sayuri Ayano."

Aishu watched as two girls walked off the grassy field and onto the dirt, both looking extremely nervous.

"Remember, this isn't a test. It's merely an observation to see where each of your skill levels are at. Just do your best. Begin!"

For the first few moments of the fight, the two girls walked around each other slowly, but soon enough, Sayuri attacked first. She ran towards Miki while swinging her staff. The other countered, using her own weapon to block the hit, and as the fight went on, these same movements continued. It looked more like sword fighting than anything. Finally, when Yukariko realized nothing much was going to change, she ended the match,

"Thank you, girls," she told them. "You gave it your best shot. For the next fight, Shino Musuka and Airy Verant."

"I did horrible, " Miki said as her and Sayuri rejoined the group. "I knew I wouldn't be good at fighting."

Aishu, with a warm smile, put her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"You did the best you could," she told her. "There's nothing horrible in that. Just keep trying and moving forward. You can only get better."

"You really think so?" Miki asked, her eyes lighting up. "Thank you so much, Aishu-chan! I will keep trying!"

"It's no, wait. How do you know my name?"

Though the two were in the same class, they had not yet formally met.

"Everyone knows who you are," Miki replied with a giggle. "Who wouldn't? Everyone's right though. You  _are_  as nice as your parents!"

"Uh, thanks," Aishu replied sheepishly.

As their conversation finished, so did the second battle, Yukariko thanking the two students and readying for the next.

"Hikaru Kokoru and Hinata Naoko."

"Good luck," Aishu whispered, Hikaru flashing her a smile before walking over to the field. Hinata followed suit and the two set their stances for battle.

"Begin!"

Neither of them moved at first, both deep in thought with how they would proceed. After a good minute, Hinata attacked. Extending her staff, she charged towards Hikaru. The girl merely dodged to the side, turning in the air as she did so. When she made the full turn around, she swung her staff right into Hinata's back, knocking her to the ground and causing Hinata to lose her weapon. Hikaru wasted no time in grabbing the other's element, dashing away and coming to a sliding stop.

"M-match, set!" Yukariko called.

At first, there was nothing but silence. No one had expected the fight to end so quickly,

but then soon enough, the silence was broken by loud cheers and whistles from the crowd.

Hikaru walked over to her opponent, extending her hand. Hinata accepted it with a smile

and stood up, the two shaking and congratulating each other for a good match.

"That was amazing!" Aishu told her friend when she rejoined the group. "You ended the fight so quickly. As to be expected of Coral Number one!"

"Thank you," Hikaru replied, blushing a bit.

Once the noise died down, Yukariko called out another set of names.

"Tomo Kasumi and Aishu Kruger."

As soon as she heard her name, her stomach started doing back flips. It was time.

"Don't worry," Hikaru told her. "You'll do great!"

Aishu gave a small nod towards her friend at the comfort words before walking off towards the field. Though she wished she could drown them out, nothing stopped the whispers that followed as she made her way.

" _That's her! That's their daughter!"_

_"I've seen her a few times and she always really nice!"_

_"I wonder if she can fight as good as her parents."_

Aishu reached the field and shook her head a bit. She needed to stay focused. Shooting a glance over to her opponent, she shot her a friendly smile.

Seeing the two were ready, Yukariko went to start the match, but before she could, something very unexpected happened.

"What the-"

The ground began to shake beneath them.  A few moments after, the land between Aishu and Tomo broke in two, a creature emerging from the hole before flying into the sky.

" A slave!" Yukariko said in shock. "Girls! Get back to the building!"

She pressed lightly down onto her earring and spoke.

"Principal! Slave attack in the practice fields!"

Yukariko, already materialized, flew up and began attacking the slave with her element, which was a bow. Aishu had already turned to run at this point, but stopped when she heard a scream. Turning, she saw Tomo still on the field, her foot caught in a crack. Hana, however, was already running towards her to help.

"Aishu, let's go!" She could hear Hikaru calling. Her body was telling her to run, but she remained frozen until Hana got Tomo free, the two of them running towards her now. She then shot a glance up at Yukariko, who was still fighting. She seemed to have things under control until the slave swung its tail around, hitting her instructor square in the back and sending her flying. The slave then turned its attention to Hana, who was still running across the field, and dove in her direction.

What happened next happened so fast the brunette barely gave the idea a chance to process. She ran past Tomo, who was not in harm's way, and towards the Pearl, the slave pulling in closer. Diving towards Hana, she knocked her to the ground and threw herself on top. With the slave only inches away now, Aishu braced herself for impact. However, to her surprise, it never came. At least not directly. Instead, she felt a sharp pain on her lower back and saw a quick flash of white. Aishu looked up to find themselves surround by a shield of light, the shield disappearing as quick as it came. This was what the slave had hit, and hard too, for it was knocked back quite a distance.

"Ai-Aishu…"

Looking back down, her deep brown orbs locked with the dark violet ones. In that very moment, something strange happened. Something neither of them could explain. Just from the mere gaze, an exchange took place. An exchange of what, they did not know, but something. For them, the world became silent, the existence of everything else disappearing in those few seconds. If left undisturbed, the two probably would have remained that way, but another voice broke their trance.

"Aishu!"

Hikaru's voice found its way to the Aishu's mind and snapped her out of the daze. Turning her head, she found the slave nearing them again. It was in this instant a new strength took over her body, the kind of strength she didn't normally feel even when materialized. Her body then seemed to move on its own for the next thing Aishu knew, she was standing up and extending her staff. She then turned, the point of the element making contact with the enemy as it closed in and piercing it right through the chest. Yukariko had come back right as she did this, her arrows shooting the slave in the back the very moment Aishu stabbed it. After half a second, a cry of pain came from the creature before it disappeared altogether, leaving nothing but green specks behind.

"What did I just…"

Aishu dropped the staff and just stared at her hands. She was shocked at her own work. Where did that strength come from? She knew that wearing her robe made her physically stronger, but not to the extent she had felt.

"Are you girl's all right?"

At this point, Hana was standing, Yukariko now joining them. Hana nodded, but Aishu couldn't answer.

"I saw what happened as I was flying back down," she told them, placing a hand on Aishu's shoulder. The girl thought Yukariko was going to mention something about seeing the weird shield of light, but her next words told her otherwise. "You helped defeat that slave. Are you-"

"Ai-chan! Hana!"

Aishu looked behind her to see both of her parents running up.

"Is everyone all right? What happened?" Natsuki asked.

"We're fine, " Hana answered. "Aishu just, well, she saved my life."

"Ai-chan?" Aishu heard Shizuru say, the woman kneeling to her height. Aishu locked gazes with her and tried to speak, but she still couldn't answer. She had no idea what to say. How was she supposed to say anything if she couldn't even make sense of what happened to herself?

" _How was I able to do that? My staff has no extra power, so where did that strength some from? What about that shield?"_

She knew Coral's could erect one, but hers was different

_"And why did my lower back burn seconds before it did?_ "

She had so many questions, her mind spinning as her parents zoned in with both comfort and questions of their own _._

" _What's going on?_

* * *

 

 

_"Well…that was interesting."_

The woman, who watched in silence as the last bit of her partner faded into green specks, had witnessed the whole event, surprised by the results. She knew how strong that slave had been, and that no normal Coral student would have been able to defeat it, yet this one did so easily. Not to mention…

" _There was that shield of light…_ "

If her assumptions were true, then this girl was far from your typical Coral student.

" _Perhaps this was my lucky day after all,_ " she thought, smirking as she walked away. Perhaps her waiting had now finally paid off, and to be sure, she'd have to pay close attention in the future. She knew it was probably too early to make such assumptions, but her gut told her it was true.

" _I hope you entertain me more in the future, Aishu-chan."_

 


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter 3

"Have they found anything yet?"

Natsuki, who was seated at her office desk, flipped through some case file pictures that were in front of her, with Shizuru. Mrs. Maria and Yukariko were them as well.

"Youko and Irina have been running this mark through the database," Mrs. Maria answered. "If this symbol was ever seen by anyone, it was long before us. It was Irina who found something. While nothing has come up about where it comes from, they could confirm the meaning behind it. The symbol, also known as a Hime mark, translates into "dark".

"Dark?" Shizuru asked. "The name doesn't sound very promising."

"Especially since they seem to show up after each attack," Yukariko added.

With a sigh, the blunette leaned back in her chair, brows deeply furrowed. For the last few weeks now, slaves have been attacking the Windbloom area. After each battle, a Hime mark, the same exact one they were speaking of, would show up not far from where the attack took place. After the slave attack at the school, it showed up scorched onto a nearby tree, and more recently, it was scorched right on the street in the center of town. What did it all mean?

"There's also something different about these slaves," Shizuru mentioned. "Although they are defeatable, they're not that easy to fight. They seem a lot stronger than the ones we have dealt with in the past."

"I noticed that when that one attacked during my class," Yukariko told her. "Definitely much more powerful, and their speed has increased as well."

"Which brings up the question on how Aishu managed to damage it the way she did so easily," Natsuki wondered. "We struggle a bit just to defeat them ourselves, yet according to some of the students who witnessed the event, as well as you Yukariko, she managed to do some severe damage to it with a single attack and defeated it alongside you. If it were a well-seasoned student, I might not question it this much, but she's never been in a slave battle before. Corals are strong, but to be strong like that is something that rarely happens. Have you seen any changes since then?"

"No," Yukariko replied. "She seems quite normal to be honest. Very talented fighter, but nothing out of the ordinary. Perhaps whatever happened in that moment was out of sheer luck."

"Maybe," Natsuki said back, but her disbelief could clearly be seen.

"It probably was," Shizuru said, placing her hand on her wife's shoulder as a comfort. "Yukariko said that she's been normal in every other combat class after that, so I'm sure there's nothing to worry about. We also asked her, remember? She said nothing out of the ordinary happened."

"You also must remember that, while it's not common for a Coral to be that strong, it's not impossible either," Mrs. Maria added. "She's Coral Number Two just as you were, and she's talented just like Yukariko said. Much to learn, yes, but a good fighter."

"True," Natsuki replied, relaxing a bit. Perhaps it was luck, and perhaps Aishu had just been strong enough to help defeat it. She was indeed a good fighter. Still, Aishu was her daughter none the less and she couldn't help but worry about her.

"It may have been a lucky hit, but I'm not letting it go quite yet."

Shizuru had to smile at this. Her wife was a worry wart as always. She herself had been worried, too, but she trusted her daughter. If anything out of the ordinary was happening to her, they would be the first to know.

With what little information they had, there was nothing left for them to go on, leaving a slightly tired Natsuki to call for a break.

"All right, we'll end this for now until we have more to work with. Please keep me informed on any new information that's found."

"We will," Mrs. Maria said back, and with a bow from both herself and Yukariko, the two women turned and left the room.

* * *

" _She's so brave for protecting Hana-oneesama like that!"_

_"She must be really strong to have defeated a slave with Yukariko-sensei!"_

_"Well what do you expect? Look at who her parents are._ "

The last thing Aishu wanted was attention. She already got enough of it from the students because she was the daughter of Natsuki and Shizuru. Now, the news of her assisting in the defeat of a slave, as well as saving Hana, was spreading like a wildfire, in turn causing the constant adoration whispers and giggles to grow. She wished, that when it got too much, she could turn them away, but she was too polite to do so, leaving her to deal with the dozens of questions and compliments. Thankfully, if Aishu ever got really stuck, Hikaru would step in and help steer them off, claiming they both had studies to get to and such.

"I will admit it though," Hikaru told her. "It was pretty amazing. You took down a slave, and as a Coral!"

The two were sitting in the far corner of the library. They had just gotten out of their last class of the day and the weekend was just beginning. As usual, she was heading to her parents that night, but tomorrow afternoon, her and Hikaru planned on some combat exercises, hence why they were trying to get some homework done now.

"I technically didn't even defeat it on my own. Yukariko-sensei did, too," Aishu replied. "Though I still don't know how it happened. It was a different kind of strength I couldn't understand. Not to mention, there was that shield of light as well Thankfully only you and Hana-oneesama saw that."

"Well, maybe we can find out a little bit more on  _how_ it happened if we can somehow find out more about the, you know…"

Aishu nodded.

"Yeah.

There was a whole other part to Aishu's side of the story that was left untold to everyone, herself and Hikaru the only ones aware. They didn't know if it meant anything, which was why they were keeping it a secret. If it turned out not to be a big deal, then they'd be making others worry for nothing.

"You know, speaking of Hana-oneesama, she's been looking for you."

Hikaru had a sly grin on her face as she spoke these words, leaving the brunette to blush a bit.

"Y-yeah? And?"

"Well, she's been trying to speak to you since that event. Don't you want to see her, too? I know you have a crush on her."

"I do not!"

Aishu's blush deepened within seconds. Though she denied it vehemently, she really had wanted to see Hana, too, but if she ever found the girl nearby, she'd get too nervous to say anything and hide. She couldn't explain why, but she just did. All Aishu would have to do is look at Hana and her heart would stop. Her chest would then burst with a million different feelings and her tummy would become inhabited by butterflies. Then, somewhere during that whole process, she would forget how to speak. Like she needed Hana to see that side of her.

"Ah, sweet denial," Hikaru said playfully. "This, ladies and gentlemen, is stage one of being bitten by the lovebug. Observation number one, whenever Hana-oneesama walks by, Aishu-chan has the inability to take her eyes off. Observation number two, she also exhibits the inability to not talk about her about fifty times a day-"

"I don't talk about her that much!"

"You do, too! Everyday it's always, 'I heard Hana-Oneesama was doing this' or 'did you know that Hana-Oneesama did that' or 'I saw Hana-Oneesama walk by today and-"

"Lies! I don't know what you're talking about. She's just my friend, a-and even if I did talk about her a lot, which I don't, it would be because she's a model student and there's much that can be learned from her!"

"There's that denial again! Why don't you just go see her? Maybe she wants to express how much she likes _her_  little Aishu-chan…"

"Hi-Hikaru!" Now she was beyond embarrassed, new feelings coursing through her, and in not knowing how to handle them quite yet, she simply stood up and grabbed a book that was beside her.

"Baka! I'm going to put this away!"

The embarrassed fourteen year old then disappeared along the shelves, far away from the pink-haired female until she could control her emotions.

"Denied feelings," she mumbled while scanning the shelf in front of her. "I don't have any feelings for her."

Her words, however, if anyone could actually hear them, were very much full of uncertainty.

After a few more minutes of searching, she found the empty spot she was looking for. Reaching up, Aishu attempted to slip the book back in place, however; something else caught her by surprise. As she reached up, she felt a pair of arms slip around her, the hands going right for her chest and squeezing.

"N-nyaa!"

Pulling away, Aishu dropped the book, turning and placing her back against the shelf while crossing her arms over her chest.

"Wh-what the…"

She wanted to spit out comments to whoever had touched her, but all her words except one seemed to choke up the moment her brown orbs met a familiar violet gaze.

"H-Hana-oneesama?"

The older female giggled, tucking a piece of her silver hair behind her ear.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't help but touch that cute body of yours."

"I, y-you, a-and…"

"Ne, has anyone ever told you how adorable you are when you stutter?"

This seemed to snap Aishu out of her little shock moment, her brows furrowing as she finally found her voice to speak.

"B-baka!" She whispered loudly. "How many times have I told you not to do that?"

Unfortunately for the younger girl, this was not the first time Hana had pulled something like this. Even before she'd become a student, Aishu had dealt with Hana's little sneak moments and affectionate comments. For some reason, the Pearl took pleasure in getting her all flustered, and it worked every time.

"It's not my fault you're cute. Anyways, I've been looking everywhere for you Ai-chan, but it seems you've been avoiding me."

"What? I haven't been avoiding you, and what did I tell you about calling me that?"

No one but her parents called her Ai-chan, but Hana, who merely smirked at the remark, had taken a liking to the name and used it constantly.

"You haven't been avoiding me? Really? It sure seems like you've been. When I see you in the hall, you take off. When I see you in the kitchens, you take off. When I see you anywhere, you take off Why is that, Ai-chan? Do you hate me?"

A fake look of sadness swept through her violet gaze, leaving Aishu to stutter up even more.

"N-no! I d-don't hate you! "

"Then why don't you want to see me?" She asked, fake sniffling before the previous smirk returned to her lips. "Is there any other reason you wouldn't want to be near me? A little secret, perhaps?"

"I was, I mean, I…"

She wouldn't admit it. Not yet.

"W-well, it doesn't matter. I don't know what you're talking about. N-now, if you don't mind, could you get on about what you needed me for?"

Hana decided to let the subject change go, walking forward as she spoke.

"What I wanted was to simply thank you for what you did a few weeks ago. You did save my life after all."

If Aishu's face could turn any redder, it did at this very moment, her gaze dropping to the floor.

"It was nothing."

"Nothing?" she asked. "Oh no, it was definitely something."

Moving quickly, she gently pushed Aishu against the shelf a little more, their bodies touching, and their gazes locked. Hana's own voice shifted to a whisper.

"For doing what you did, you deserve a  _special_  gift."

"G-gift?" Aishu asked, working hard to keep her composure. "Wh-what kind of gift?"

Hana leaned in closer, her forehead pressed gently against Aishu's, their gaze unbreakable.

"A gift I have given no other," she told her. "Now do tell, do you often stare at me every chance you get, and do you speak of me all the time?"

"Wha-"

"I mean, I know dear Hikaru-chan was teasing you, but in order to tease you for something like that, you must have done those deeds quite a bit."

Aishu's eyes widened.

"You heard that?!"

"I did," she replied. "So, tell me  _my_  little Ai-chan. Do you have a crush on me?"

Now Aishu's senses and emotions were on over drive. Hana was very close, their gazes still upon each other. Aishu knew that her gaze alone had given Hana the answer, but it still didn't keep her from fighting.

"Look, I think I should be going now," the brunette started. "L-lots of things to do you know. My parents are expecting me soon, and Hikaru-chan and I had a few plans before that, s-so I think it would be a good idea if we just-"

Her ramble was cut off almost instantly when Hana's hand touched her cheek. A shiver then traveled up her spine, her heart thumping in her chest.

"Hana," she whispered, the awe of this moment causing Aishu to drop formalities. No matter how much she fought it, Aishu couldn't deny the flutters that echoed in her chest. She couldn't deny how pretty Hana was in this moment, or how pretty she was all the time. She also couldn't deny the feeling of wanting Hana's lips to come in contact with hers as they crept in closer and closer…

"Gah!"

Snapping to her senses, Aishu pushed Hana back. Not hard enough to her hurt her, but enough to give them a bit of distance between each other. She could feel the heat rising to her face once again, the warmth of Hana's hand still on her cheek.

" _Did she just try to, to kiss me?_ "

"You have no crush, huh?"

The sound of the new voice pulled Aishu from her own little world. Turning to the side, she found Hikaru staring at them both with quite a satisfied and amused look on her face.

"What? Y-you, n-no, bah!"

Bending down, Aishu picked up her fallen book, placed it on the shelf, and half sped towards her friend.

"Excuse me, Hana-Oneesama, th-there's a thing with, a-and, t-to do. So, g-going."

Poor thing was flustered hardcore, and knowing she wouldn't be able to form proper sentences any longer, she took Hikaru by the hand and tore from the library.

* * *

"Oooooh, Ai-chaaaaaan?"

Silence filled the dorm room after her name was called, a pair of aqua blue eyes staring at the other which oh so much amusement.

"I knew it. I knew you had a crush on her! I saw those eyes of yours when she got closer. Were you having dirty thoughts about her? "

"Hikaru! I don't have dirty thoughts!"

The two had run to their room without a word. After changing from her school uniform to a simple t-shirt and sweat pants, Aishu sat on her bed, Hikaru walking from her own and plopping right next to her.

"I saw the way she looked at you. You had a very interesting gaze, too."

"No, I didn't!" She was still far beyond flustered. "I, t-there was no gaze, and she, well, she's crazy and-"

"Mhm, crazy about you!"

"No, she's not! I told you, we're just friends."

"Oh, please. She just tried to kiss you. Friends don't do that.

"W-wait, you thought she was going to kiss me?"

Aishu, of course, had thought that too, but she was so worked up she couldn't tell if that idea was real or not.

"Well duh, and she would have if you hadn't stopped her. You can't deny your feelings now. She so has a crush on you, too! Come on, it's a good thing! Think of all the fun you two could have together, alone, in a room…with her hands touching your-"

"Hikaru!"

The taller female giggled at this. She could never get enough of teasing Aishu, but for now…

"All right, all right. We'll change the subject. How about you show me that thing again?"

Suddenly, the atmosphere became a little more serious. Not terribly so, but enough to calm the brunette's nerves. Hikaru was referring to the other part of the slave attack story. Standing up, she turned and lifted her shirt a little, exposing her lower back slightly, and on her skin, right near her hip and as clear as day, was a funny shaped deep red mark.

"Has it burned since then?"

"A little," Aishu replied, rubbing it a bit. "Not as much as it did on that day, but a little."

Hikaru leaned in to get a closer look.

"Hmmm, I know I've seen something like this before, but I can't remember. You said it showed up right after you produced that light shield, correct?"

"Yeah."

Her mind flashed back to when she had been protecting Hana. She had no idea where that shield had come from, and if that wasn't enough to confuse her, she now had a little mark on her skin, something that had never been there her entire life.

"Have you told your parents yet?"

"No, I haven't found the time really," Aishu answered. "There's been quite a few more slave attacks since that day, so they've been kind of busy. Even spending time together has become shorter."

Although she loved quality time with her parents, they always seemed stressed out whenever she would drop by, even on weekends. Natsuki especially was stressed. With all the extra work on their plates, she didn't want to bother them with something as minute as a mark on her back.

"It's just a silly mark, probably nothing."

"I don't know," Hikaru said, still eying it. "I still think we should look into it a little more and…wait. Wait! I have an idea!"

"What?" Aishu asked.

"I know you're spending the weekend at your parents, and I know we had plans to do some combat work tomorrow afternoon, too, but I know someone who might know a little about that. Interested?"

Aishu, flashing her friend a curious gaze, simply nodded.

"Yeah, who is it?"

"You'll see. So instead of meeting me on the fields, meet me back here tomorrow afternoon, okay?"

"Okay," Aishu replied, her curiosity peaking even more so. Who else would know about this? Was it all that important? Why did it suddenly show up out of nowhere? She had a lot of questions, so hopefully tomorrow, she would get her answers.

**Author's Note: Hello everywhere :) I hope you're enjoying it so far and I hope none of it's boring! What is this new mark Aishu has discovered? What's the meaning, and how will poor Natsuki and Shizuru handle it when they find out the truth? Also, poor little Ai-chan...she has her very own Shizuru...**


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter 4

"Are you questioning my judgment?"

A blonde female sat at a small wooden desk, mild irritation noticeable in her voice as she spoke into a green gemmed necklace that hung against her chest.

" _I'm sorry, my lady,_ " the man replied. " _I don't mean to question you, but it seems like you're assuming this notion a little too soon. The school's only been open for a month and a half, not nearly enough time to collect the necessary data required to move on. Don't you think it would be better if-_ "

"Let me make something perfectly clear," she cut in. "I'm not  _assuming_  anything. I know she's the one we're looking for. The shield she erected on the day of the attack was made of pure light. It was different from the one a normal Coral uses."

" _I understand,"_ he said back. " _However, that was only a one-time thing, wasn't it? No more attempts have been made on her specifically to confirm that she's the one nor has she shown any other sign of being who you think she is. How can you-"_

"My mark burned the moment that shield came about," she snapped. "It hasn't burned like that since  _my_ powers first awakened two years ago. Hers are now just starting to surface. That, on top of her not knowing what really triggers her powers, would be the reason why you've not seen much from her. I  _know_  she's the one and I  _know_ what I'm doing. So, it would be in your best interest to not argue with me, or do I need to find someone more capable of following orders?"

There was an uncomfortable silence on the other line.

" _No, you don't. I'm very sorry for questioning you and I will follow whatever command you give. I do, however, have one question._ "

"What would that be?"

" _If she is indeed the one, then why not destroy her now? If she hasn't figured out how to use her powers or even how to summon her Child, then why not take advantage of this by killing her early?"_

The woman simply smirked.

"You fool. In order for us to defeat her properly and permanently, the summoning of her Child is necessary. If she's killed off now, we'll only end up back at square one. Let her summon her Child, for it opens the way to the one item those two need to truly connect. Once the way is open, and if we can get our hands on that item first, then we can destroy it ourselves, taking the win. However, if they get it before us, then she'll have access to her full powers and we will have no choice but to battle her. I'd like very much to avoid that. So, no, we cannot destroy her now. We can, however, destroy her trigger. Weaken it, and her power weakens, too, so even with a summoned Child, she'd be no match against me. Not if her heart is weak. I do like the idea of toying with her. There's nothing more satisfying than exposing one's weaknesses and using it against them. Hmmm, any more foolish questions?"

" _What should my next move should be?_ "

"Nothing right now," she replied. "Continue the work on your end. I'll give you the word on when to release the next one. I must keep that Headmistress and her wife as busy as possible."

" _Yes, my lady. I await your command._ "

With that, the conversation ended. Leaning back in her chair, her smirk grew, the thought of being able to toy with her enemy for a while a sweet one. She would have to keep a close eye on the girl, and if her cards were played right, everything would work in her favor.

"I will destroy you, even if it's little by little," she whispered. "In the end, I'll be victorious. In the end, you will not come out alive."

 

* * *

 

 

"Irina-sensei's office?"

After spending a good chunk of the day with her parents, most of which was them dealing with endless phone calls and such, Aishu was now with Hikaru as planned, and in front of an office she was not expecting.

"What are we doing here?" Aishu asked while rubbing a wrinkle out of her uniform gym pants.

"To see her of course," Hikaru replied. "She's really smart and likes digging into things like ancient symbols and languages."

"You think the mark is an ancient symbol of some sort?"

"It could be. If it is, she can help us. If not, then we'll just have to keep looking."

"Even if she does know, what makes you think she will tell us anything?" The brunette asked. "She's an instructor after all."

"Easy," Hikaru answered. "All we need is this."

Digging through her bag, she took out a small, black box.

"What exactly  _is_  that?" Aishu asked, cocking her brow a bit.

"You'll see. Trust me. This will work."

Hikaru reached out and knocked on the door.

"Come in!"

Opening it, the two stepped inside.

"Irina-sensei," Hikaru called with a wave and a smile.

"Oh, hey Hikaru-chan," the red head replied as she finished typing something on her computer. Looking over now, she flashed a smile in turn. "Hello to you to as well, Aishu-chan. What brings you both here?"

"A deal," Hikaru said proudly. "A deal I know you won't be able to resist. "

"Oh really?" Irina asked with a smirk. "What's this great deal of yours?"

Hikaru handed the box to the other female, the teacher curiously opening it up.

"Woah, what the…this is amazing!"

Aishu cocked her head a bit, eying the little black oval object Irina now held, but having no idea what it was. It must have been something good, however, for Irina was dumbfounded by it.

"Where did you even get this?"

"My parents," Hikaru replied simply. "Remember how I told you that they're archeologists? Well, they tend to send me random things they find for my collection. They gave this to me right before I came to school."

"Seriously?" Irina asked. "You have any idea how rare this is?"

"I do," Hikaru replied with a smirk. "Just think, it could be all yours if you wanted it."

"Uh huh, " Irina replied, her eyes narrowing. "What is it you want in return?"

"Information about this."

Without giving any warning, Hikaru grabbed Aishu by the arms and spun her around before lifting her shirt slightly to expose the mark near her hip.

"Hikaru! Wa-"

"Trust me!"

Irina inched forward to get a closer look at what the girl was trying to show her, and when she finally took note of it, her eyes widened with shock.

"No way…"

"What?" Hikaru asked. "You know what this is?"

Without a word, Irina grabbed a camera that had been sitting on her desk and snapped a photo of what she was being shown.

"How did you get this mark?" She asked.

"I don't know," Aishu answered. "It showed up about a month or so ago."

Shifting back to her computer, Irina clicked through some files, mumbling to herself before coming to a stop at a few pictures. Leaning back, she beckoned them to look a bit closer.

"You two might want to see this."

Leaning in, the two looked at the screen, and after a few moments, their reaction went from curious to shock.

"Aishu-chan," Hikaru whispered. "That symbol, it's just like…"

"Like mine," Aishu finished. There, right in front of them, was a picture of a strange mark. It wasn't the same one that was on her hip, but it was pretty close. There were only one or two minor differences. The thing was, though, the mark shown in the picture wasn't on any person, but on objects instead. The one they were staring at was on a tree, and a picture beside it showed it scorched onto a road.

"What is that?" Aishu asked.

"You mean you don't know?" Irina raised her brow a bit. "I'm actually a bit surprised you don't seeing as your parents are the main investigators of this case."

"Case?" Aishu asked, a bit more confused. "You mean all the slave attacks going on? What's that got to do with this?"

"These marks," she said, pointing to the screen. "Appear scorched in different areas after every slave attack."

Aishu froze a little at that statement. They appeared after  _every_ attack?

"Didn't you say yours burned and appeared on you after that first slave attack at the school?" Hikaru asked.

Irina eyed the brunette with a more serious gaze.

"Is that true?"

"Well, yeah. It started burning when-"

Before Aishu could finish, the phone rang, Irina turning to pick it up.

"Hello? Mhm. Yes, I did. I'll bring them up straight away."

Hanging up the phone, she grabbed a few folders that were sitting beside her and stood up.

"That was Youko-sensei," she told them. "I'm needed, so unfortunately we must end this conversation for now. I'll run your mark through the database and see what I can find. I don't know how long it'll be before I get back to you, but I'll do my best. However, if you wish to look into this yourselves, I have a friend not far from here who might be able to help. His name is Heero Kenpachi. He owns a store that sells a lot of ancient books and other items as well. I've found some pretty useful things there in the past. I've been meaning to go down, but I haven't gotten the chance. If you're interested, I'll give you all the information you need. You're also going to have to find some way to get permission to leave the school, too."

The three stepped into the hallways, Irina locking the door behind her.

"Can you not tell my parents about this yet?" Aishu asked, a little worried. "It's just, I'll do it myself, but I want a little more time."

Irina thought about this for a moment, eyes narrowing a little before answering.

"Very well. Tell them as soon as you can, though. If I find out anything else, I'll keep you posted."

"Awesome, thanks!" Hikaru said back. "See you soon!"

Irina then took off, leaving the two girls alone.

"We should definitely look into meeting that guy," Hikaru said. "If Irina-sensei says it's worth it, then it must be."

"How are we supposed to do that?" Aishu asked. "I'm sure Mrs. Maria would be a little reluctant to let two Coral students out to see some guy about ancient items."

"Oh, getting out is easy!" Hikaru replied with an evil glint in her eyes. "I'm sure if you look at your darling Hana-Oneesama with those big old baby browns, she would easily give you permission, which in turn would make Mrs. Maria agree as well."

"What? No way!" Aishu exclaimed, blushing a bit. "Not after yesterday! I've been doing my best to stay away from her!"

"Oh really? I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why's that?"

"Oh, nothing, " Hikaru lied, clearly knowing something Aishu did not. "Don't avoid her, Aishu-chan, especially when I know how much you wanted that kiss."

"I did not!"

"Ah, that sweet denial again, but really, it wouldn't hurt to ask. She is the number one Pearl after all, so she could easily get a yes from Mrs. Maria. So what if a few crazy lovey things happen to you when you ask. Take one for the team! This might be our only chance to get some really good information!"

Aishu sighed and rubbed her head.

"Look, let's just wait it out, okay?" The brunette suggested. "Give it a couple days. If Irina-sensei doesn't get back to us with anything, then I guess I can ask."

"Promise?"

"Yeah, yeah." Aishu replied. "As much as it'll suck doing so, I promise."

"All right!" Hikaru said excitedly. "You're the best, Aishu-chan!"

"Uh huh, but if she squeezes my boobs again, I'm coming after you. Anyways, I'm going back to my parents. I'll see you later, yeah?"

"Mhm! Later!"

The two then went their separate ways.

 

* * *

 

 

" _I really hope they're not too busy,_ " Aishu thought as she walked along the hall. Lately, she was feeling a bit stressed. She could handle school work and training well enough, but after the sudden appearance of that mark on her back, that was all she could think about. Now, with the new information she had been given, she knew she'd be thinking about it even more. Was her mark connected to the other that had been showing up with the slave attacks? Did it mean anything? She meant to ask Irina-sensei that, but forgot when the phone call came through.

On top of all of that, Aishu also had Hana to worry about. Even though the Pearl had cornered her before, yesterday's actions really took her off guard. It seemed that the flutter in her heart was getting worse and worse every time Hana was around, so logically, Aishu thought that if she avoided the other, then the feeling would go away.

" _If that's so, then why can't I stop looking for her?"_

While Aishu often disappeared when Hana got close, she liked to at least catch a glimpse of the older female once a day. It was a comfort to see her doing all right. Today, she saw her about three or four different times, but then would disappear out of sight before Hana could get to her. At one point, Hikaru had told her Hana had been searching for her yet again, but Aishu disregarded the comment, thinking it was just a tease. Her best friend seemed to be under the impression that she had quite a crush for the number one pearl.

" _Which is not true,_ " she told herself. " _There's no way I could have any kind of feelings for Hana._ "

Just because she loved how beautiful her eyes were, or how wonderful and warm her smile was, did not mean a thing.

"Good evening, Aishu-chan."

Aishu broke away from her little world and looked up.

"Oh, good evening Aiko-Oneesama," she said, bowing to Pearl number four. "How are you?"

"I'm doing well, thank you," the blonde replied. "How about you? Are you doing all right? You seem a bit distracted."

"I'm sorry," Aishu said back. "I don't mean to be. I'm just a little stressed, but it's nothing to worry about, I promise."

Aiko giggled.

"Well, stress is understandable. People have been around you all the time since the slave incident. You've become quite popular around here."

"Yeah, " the brunette said softly while scratching the back of her head. "So it seems."

"Well, can you blame everyone?" Aiko asked. "That was quite the heroic move, saving Hana-Oneesama like that, not to mention taking on a slave as a Coral and defeating it with Yukariko-sensei. I am quite impressed."

"Thank you," Aishu replied back, blushing a bit.

"You're welcome. Anyways, I'm off to the library for a bit. I'm sure I'll see you around. Have a good night."

"You as well," Aishu said back as she started walking again. That walk, however, quickly turned into a small run the closer she got to her parents. She just wanted to forget everything for the moment. No mark, no slaves, nothing. She just wanted her family.

When she reached their door, she gave it a few knocks.

"Come in."

She opened the door and stepped inside, silently praying they would no longer be tied up with things.

"I'm back, is everything-"

Aishu immediately stopped in her tracks.

"Ha-Hana-Oneesama?"

Yes, she was allowed to forget about the slaves and her mark for the time being, but fate would never let her forget the silver haired girl, nor would fate let the two be apart forever.

"Hello, Aishu-chan," Hana greeted, smiling sweetly.

"Um, am I interrupting?"

"Not at all," Shizuru told her daughter. "Actually, your timing couldn't have been more perfect. We were just speaking about you."

"About me?" Aishu asked while walking over to the desk. "Did I do something wrong?"

"I would hope not," Natsuki replied with a smile. "No, Hana just came to us with a request."

"Really? What is it?"

"Well," Natsuki continued. "She requested that you become her room attendant."

Aishu's mouth nearly dropped.

"Wh-whaaa? Her room attendant?"

"Yes," Shizuru answered. "It's time for her to choose one, and she's decided on you."

It was in that moment Hikaru's little warning about not avoiding Hana today played through her mind.

" _I swear,_ _if Hikaru already knew about this, I'm going to kill her._ "

"You all right, Ai-chan?" Shizuru asked.

"Uh, y-yeah," she stuttered out. "I just didn't expect that."

"Well, I'm very impressed on your performance here at school," Hana told her. "Your work is excellent, and you're very talented with your combat skills. I would be honored to take you on as an attendant and provide help when needed."

Aishu looked from Hana, to her parents, and then right back to Hana.

" _I can't believe she's doing this. I bet she went to my parents on purpose to rule out the possibility of a no._ "

"I think it's a wonderful idea," Shizuru told her. "I see no reason why you'd turn it down!"

"Yeah, amazing. Um, will you two excuse us for a moment?"

She then grabbed Hana by the hand and pulled her to the doorway that led to the hallway of her and her parents living quarters. "We'll be right back."

Pulling the girl inside, she shut the door behind her.

"What do you think you're doing?" Aishu asked in a sharp whisper, taking care her Mothers would not hear.

That innocent, oh so sweet smile disappeared the moment they were alone, the playful fun Hana coming out to visit.

"What?" Hana asked innocently. "I thought this was another way to repay you for saving my life. I know how much you wanted to kiss me yesterday, so I thought I'd do something to give us some extra time together my little Ai-Chan."

"I'm not your Ai-chan!" She said with a blush.

"Oh really?" Hana walked closer as she spoke, forcing the brunette to back up against the door.

"Y-yes, r-really," Aishu replied, sounding less and less confident as she continued on. "I told you that only my parents can call me Ai-chan, and let's get something straight. I had no intentions of kissing you, nor do I ever want to kiss!"

Much closer now, Hana brought her head close to Aishu's ear.

"Are you sure about that?" she whispered. "I saw the look in your eyes. I think Ai-chan wanted to kiss very much. You just don't want to admit it."

As if the closeness wasn't enough to make the younger female lose her composure, the sudden quick blow into her ear from the other sealed the deal.

"H-Hana!"

Aishu immediately covered her mouth when she realized how loud she had been.

"There's nothing to admit!" Aishu whispered. "You just have the wrong idea."

Hana took a single step back and pouted.

"Ne, Ai-chan is so mean to me. If what you're saying is true, I must be blind then."

"What do you mean?" Aishu asked, suddenly confused.

"You know what I mean," Hana replied. "We pass each other in the halls quite often, and each time, I see the way Ai-chan looks at me before she hides."

Aishu could feel her face turn redder at that comment. She tried to deny it, but was too choked up. For one, her heart flutters were on overdrive, and two, well, everything Hana was saying  _was_  true. She always stared at Hana before running off.

"Anyways," Hana continued, Aishu's silence confirming all she needed. "I thought it would be nice to formally ask your parents for you to be my room attendant."

"You couldn't ask me first? You should have at least told me before coming here."

"I tried," Hana said back. "I looked for you everywhere today, but each time I saw you, you'd disappear on me."

Aishu grumbled.

"What if I say no? I do have that option."

"Oh, you won't say that. I know you'll take the position."

"Do you now?" Aishu asked, raising a brow. "What makes you so confident?"

"Easy. I know you'll take it because, if you don't, I'll have to tell your parents about that precious moment we shared in the library and how much their sweet daughter wanted to be kissed."

"You will not!" She exclaimed with a small panic. She wasn't ready to share that with her Moms yet. "You wouldn't!"

"Just watch me," Hana said with an evil grin. She then placed her hand on the door leading back into the office.

"No!" Aishu lunged forward and pushed Hana back against the wall. In lunging so hard, she had brought herself close to the other, their faces now inches apart. With gazes locked, Aishu found that once again, she was entranced by those deep violet eyes.

" _They really are beautiful._ "

"Please, Ai-chan?"

Hana's voice broke her dace. The tone had become softer, the playfulness replaced with sincerity. The gaze had softened as well, Hana's expressive eyes warm and inviting.

Aishu sighed in defeat.

"You know, when someone uses puppy dog eyes to get their way, it's called cheating." Aishu inwardly groaned, knowing very well that her life was about to get a little bit crazier." Fine, I accept your request."

The smile Aishu received from her answer nearly turned her heart into goo.

"Thank you," Hana told her, Aishu's heart beating a mile a minute. "That really makes me happy."

Aishu was locked onto that happy grin. She couldn't take her eyes off her, and because of this, she failed to realize that Hana had somehow slipped her hand up her shirt, finding its way to the same exact spot it did the previous day.

"G-gah! Hana!"

The door slammed open and an incredibly red-faced Aishu walked out closely followed by a very happy Hana. Walking over to her parents, she stood and half hid behind Shizuru.

"I accepted."

"And I'm very honored she did," Hana told them. "Thank you very much for your time. I look forward to working with Aishu-chan in the future. Thank you again Headmistress and Shizuru-Oneesama. Have a goodnight."

With that, Hana turned and headed out the door.

Aishu could feel her parents' eyes on her during the momentary silence, causing her to blush even more and to hide her face in Shizuru's back.

"Stop staring."

"Did something happen?" Natsuki asked.

"No."

Shizuru giggled at this, winking over at her wife as she did. The two girls had been friends for quite a while and this wasn't the first time they had seen Aishu act this way. They weren't blind.

" _The second Coral crushing on the number one Pearl,"_ Natsuki thought. " _Sounds familiar._ "

Wanting to change the subject, Aishu wrapped her arms around her Mothers waist and hugged tight.

"Ne, can we go relax or something? I need you guys."

"Aww, my love," Shizuru said with a warm smile. Turning around, she wrapped her own arms around her daughter, hugging her close. The older brunette was truly proud at how far Aishu had come over the years. She was so much happier and would no longer hesitate to admit when she just needed some loving, something the two parents were always willing to give.

After kissing her on the head, Shizuru let go, Aishu now peeking over at the blunette.

"Come here, you." Natsuki beckoned with a smile, patting her leg.

Aishu wasted no time in making her way over. After sitting on Natsuki's lap, she wrapped her arms around her neck and laid her head on her the woman's shoulder, letting out a content sigh once she was snuggled in. Right where she wanted to be.

"You all right, love?" Natsuki asked, kissing her on the cheek.

"Mhm," she said softly, closing her eyes for a moment. "Just tired."

"I'm sorry we didn't spend much time together today as we planned," Natsuki told her with a little squeeze. "We just got so tied up in phone conferences and such."

"It's okay. I promise."

"Not for us, it's not," she said back, hugging her daughter tight. "We wanted to spend time with you today."

Aishu couldn't help but smile at this. Opening her eyes, she brought her head back up and opened her mouth to speak, but her gaze caught something else before she could, her eyes widening a bit when she saw it.

"What's that?"

Natsuki followed her daughters gaze to the item on her desk.

"This photo?" She asked, picking it up. It was the same exact photo she saw in Irina's office, the one with the mark scorched onto a tree.

"Yeah."

Natsuki and Shizuru looked up at each other as if they were wondering whether or not the answer should be shared, but a nod from Natsuki ended the debate.

"It's called a Hime mark," Shizuru answered while making her way over to them. "You know all of those slave attacks? This mark has been appearing after every one of them."

This she knew, but was there more?

" _I'm surprised you don't know seeing as your parents are the head investigators of this case._ "

Irina's words played through her mind. Aishu knew from past experiences that her parents would sometimes keep certain cases to themselves, wanting to not involve her in order to protect her, but she couldn't help but ask about this one.

"How did it get there? Who's leaving them? Does it mean anything?"

Natsuki raised her eyebrow slightly at the sudden strand of questions.

"We're not sure how they got there or who's doing it," she told her. "We're still looking into that. As for the meaning, well, this particular one, according to Youko-sensei, translates into dark."

" _Dark_?" The meaning didn't sound too nice. Was it a bad thing then that she shared a similar mark?

"You sure you're all right?" The blunette asked.

"Yeah, " Aishu replied, breaking her trance a bit and snuggling back up. "Just tired. Like I said, I really want you guys."

Natsuki held her daughter even closer, Shizuru right behind her and scratching at the young brunette's back. Now, for Aishu, this was perfect. The two of them always made her stress disappear even when she thought it couldn't.

"Well, then let's go get snuggled up on the couch for a movie then, yes?"

"Yes!" Aishu said with a happy smile. "Family time!"

Getting up, she slipped her hand into Natsuki's followed both her parents to the door.

" _The scorched one means dark,_ " she told herself. " _I'll have to tell Hikaru tomorrow. Maybe if we tell Irina-sensei too, it'll help her figure out mine._ "

That, however, was for tomorrow. Today she just needed her parents.

" _Still though, dark. What could that mean?_ "


	5. Chapter Five

**Author's Note: Hello lovely faces! I hope everyone had a good holiday :) Thanks again to all my readers! I hope this next chapter isn't too too boring xD This is a bit of a set up before some crazy things start to happen, including a return of another familiar Mai Otome Character! Her entrance will be coming soon!**

 

Chapter 5

It had been approximately two weeks since both Aishu and Hikaru found out about the Hime mark left from the slave attacks, and in that time period, they were unable to get any fresh news from Irina. They did find out some more about the slaves and their power, but in regard to her mark, nothing. This bothered Aishu some as she often wondered if her own symbol was somehow connected to the one meaning dark. Since the dark one always appeared after attacks, she sincerely hoped hers was something different.

With getting no answers, and after non-stop pushing from Hikaru, Aishu reluctantly kept her promise about asking Hana for permission to leave the school for a few hours. Now, she was grumpily facing the girl for the answer.

"Sure, I'll give you permission."

Aishu's mouth dropped a bit in shock.

"Wait, what?"

"I said I'll give you permission," Hana replied simply while staring back at the girl with a neutral expression.

The brunette was not expecting such a quick answer or an easy one at that. There was no fight about it. She simply asked, and the other answered.

" _There has to be something wrong,_ " Aishu thought. Normally, when the two were alone, Hana was always in a teasing mood, but from the moment she walked in, Hana didn't seem like that person at all. In fact, when Aishu had opened the door and first glanced at Hana, it looked as if she had just finished crying. This worried Aishu and left her feeling uncomfortable. Did Hana need someone?

"Are you all right?" Aishu found herself asking.

The question seemed to catch the silver-haired girl off guard a bit, a small flash of shock briefly passing through her violet eyes.

"Of course. Why do you ask?"

Aishu furrowed her brows while eying the girl with a little disbelief. Though the other had hidden it well, she could still see a few signs that the girl had been crying. Not to mention, Aishu was familiar with the whole crying, hiding, and then pretending to be okay thing. She had done it so often in her younger years, so she knew what to look for.

"Are you sure?" Aishu asked again.

Hana's gaze warmed a bit, the girl merely nodding her head in reply.

"I am. Do I look like I'm not?"

Though a little concerned, Aishu wasn't going to push her. If Hana had wanted to say something, she would have.

"No," Aishu answered. "I guess, especially since I never gave you the reason why we wanted to leave, I didn't expect you to agree so easily."

Hana was quiet at first, the gears inside her mind turning before a playful little smirk crept on her face.

"Well, I  _am_  curious, but I'm sure you have your reasons. As long as it puts no one in danger."

"No!" Aishu replied quickly. "It doesn't. Irina-sensei said she's known this guy for quite some time and well, yeah."

"I trust in you, so don't me too shocked at my cooperation. The yes also comes without issue because  _I know_  I'm not allowing you to do this for free. Knowing that I can have my way with you in return is a wonderful prospect."

A deep blush grew on Aishu's face, her mouth nearly dropping again at Hana's sudden

comment. Now  _that_  was the Hana she knew.

"Wh-what?" she stuttered out. "W-we didn't-"

"What's the matter, Ai-chan?" she asked playfully. "Did you really think I would allow you permission so easily without getting something in return?"

"Well, I thought, a-and you j-just said…nyaa! What happened to you?! One minute you're all, normal, and now you're…"

Poor Aishu was all lost for words as she rubbed her temple in frustration. Where the sudden mood change came from baffled her, but she decided to just ignore it for now. There were more pressing matters at hand and she really wanted to get this conversation over with. Her heart was already on overdrive.

"Just forget it. Look. Since you agreed, do you want to know what's going on or not?"

Hana propped her elbow on the arm of the chair and rested her head in her hand.

"Please, do tell."

For the next few minutes, Aishu shared what she knew about the current situation, taking care not to miss a single detail.

"Then, Irina-Sensei promised to keep us informed on any new information regarding the slaves and the marks. I mean, I spent my whole life without that symbol, and then all of a sudden, it pops up burning during that first slave attack. Then there was that shield, remember? I have no idea how that came about or how I helped defeat that slave so easily. More than anything, I want to know where that scorched mark is coming from and why my own looks so similar. I haven't told my parents yet, but they've been so busy that I don't want to bother or worry them. I'll tell them once I've found some answers."

At first, Hana remained quiet, which made Aishu nervous, but after a few moments, she finally spoke.

"Well, to begin with, I was rather surprised about that shield. I've never seen it in a Coral. I was also surprised that you helped Yukariko-sensei defeat that slave. They're not easy to fight. Even now those who fight them, your parents included, have found defeating them to be a pain. What makes this story even more interesting is that they're not just normal slaves. These ones are much stronger then the ones Otome have fought in the past. They have different powers as well, and are a lot faster. Irina-sensei and Youko-sensei have been studying these changes very closely in hopes of finding any weak spots that could help defeat them with greater haste."

"I know," Aishu said back. "That's what Irina-Sensei told us. She said that's what's been taking up most of her time, which is why we haven't found out much about my mark yet. She said…she…"

Aishu paused for a moment, looking at Hana curiously.

"Wait a second, how did you know about all that?"

"Know what?" she asked innocently.

"About the slaves. How did you know that they were more powerful than past ones? How did you know that both Irina and Youko-sensei were researching them? Irina-sensei told me that my parents were keeping information from the rest of the student body."

Hana simply smiled.

"Let me let you in on a little secret of my own. Your parents have asked for some of the Pearls to become part of this investigation. The Triage, as well as Aiko-Oneesama, have been helping them since day one. If there's an attack, at least one of us is out there helping one of the Meister's. We've also been helping Irina-sensei and Youko-sensei as well."

Aishu just stood there in shock.

"Wait, so this whole time, you've known what's been going on?"

"Mhm."

"Well, when I asked for some information from my parents before, they only told me a little, saying they wanted to keep all the students out of it. They wanted to keep everyone as calm as possible."

"They do," Hana replied. "Aside from the top four Pearls, no other student knows. Well, besides you and Hikaru now. They don't want to stir a panic. Not to mention, you're their daughter. They'd want to keep you out most of all because they want to protect you. Granted, you did help defeat a slave, but that makes them want to protect you even more. They don't want you in another position where you have to defend yourself again, at least not against those slaves."

Aishu could get that. Even though she felt that she fully capable of taking care of herself, her parents were quite protective of her. Not that she minded that too much. She knew what life was like without them. It was better to have protective parents than none at all.

"So now you have a mark as well?" Hana asked.

"Yes," Aishu replied. "Right near the hip on my back."

"You're sure it's never been there before?"

"Never. Didn't show up until the day we got attacked on the practice fields."

"You also say it's similar to the one found after the attacks?"

"Yes," Aishu answered. "Not quite the same, but very similar."

"Hmm, can I see it?"

Aishu looked up a little confused.

"See it?"

"Yes!" Hana replied. "Can I see the mark?"

"I told you," Aishu said, blushing a little. She had an odd feeling on where Hana was going with this. "Besides a few small changes, it looks like the other one that means dark."

"So?" The taller female said back. "I want to see it myself."

"You can't. It's near my hip on my back, and since I'm in uniform you, you know, wouldn't be able to see it unless you lifted my dress up."

"Oh, I  _do_  know," Hana said slyly, an evil glint in her eyes. "That's perfectly fine with me. I want to see more of you anyways."

"Wh-what? N-no!" Aishu snapped back. "You're crazy! What makes you think I'll let you do that?"

"Aww, my Ai-chan looks so cute when she gets worked up."

"I'm  _not_  getting worked up," she mumbled. "And I am  _not_  your Ai-chan."

"Oh, but you are!" Hana told her. "You see,  _I_ chose  _you_  to be my room attendant, and, to my knowledge, no one else but myself can make you blush and stutter the way you are right now. Therefore, you're mine!"

Aishu opened her mouth to protest, but Hana quickly cut her off.

"Now, my little A-i-chan, please show me your mark."

"No," Aishu said simply, looking away and ignoring the way her heart jumped when Hana said her name like that. She wasn't going to give in, and at her reluctance, Hana only sighed.

"Well then, I suppose I have no choice."

Before Aishu had a chance to look back and say something, Hana had leapt off the chair and tackled Aishu, the brunette landing stomach down onto the bed.

"Hey! L-let me go! What do you think you're doing?" Aishu asked, struggling to get up, but she found the Pearl to be a lot stronger than she looked.

"I told you," Hana replied. "I want to see that mark, and…"

Before finishing, she brought her head close to Aishu's ear and whispered.

"I want to see more of my Ai-chan."

Moments after, Aishu's eyes widened as she felt the other tug at her dress.

"H-HANA!"

 

* * *

 

 

_(Outside the door)_

Two women froze in the hallway right in front of a dormitory door. They  _were_ just on their way back to their own living quarters, however, a very familiar voice stopped them right in their tracks, and it was the wide-eyed blunette that reacted first, her left eye twitching slightly.

"Was…that…just…"

Shizuru nearly burst into giggles, the woman covering her mouth with one hand as to not be heard by the girls inside.

"That's not funny!" Natsuki half shouted in a whisper. "That was Ai-chan's voice! From Hana's dorm! She yelled her name the way I used to yells yours when you would start, and y-you…gah! That's our daughter in there! If Hana is anything like you were when-"

"If Hana is anything like I was when I was at that age, then I am sure Ai-chan is enjoying herself!" Shizuru told her wife, cutting her off.

"Enjoying herself?" Natsuki asked in disbelief. "How could she be enjoying herself? I know I didn't enjoy being stuck in certain situations with you!"

At this, Shizuru gently pushed her wife against the wall and leaned in close.

"Don't lie to me, Nat-su-ki…" she whispered.

Natsuki turned her head away, shuddering a bit. She always got the chills when Shizuru said her name like that.

"I'm not l-lying," the blunette said back, knowing full well Shizuru didn't believe her. "You always drove me crazy."

"Oh really?" Shizuru asked, a hint of humor in her voice. It was always amusing to see Natsuki deny how much she pleasured their sexier moments. "Well, it seems not much has changed then, because if I recall the events from last night correctly, I do believe I still drive you  _crazy_."

Natsuki couldn't help but blush at this comment, her stubborn face breaking into a little, devious smile.

"Well, if _I_  recall correctly," Natsuki told her. "It was  _you_ who was driven crazy."

Shizuru giggled and grabbed Natsuki by the hand.

"Well, seeing as Ai-chan won't be over until tonight, I think we should go test this theory again, don't you agree?"

Natsuki's playful smile grew, and after giving a gentle squeeze to the woman's hand, she pulled her down the hall.

"You haven't changed one bit, Shizuru," she told her wife. "Not one bit."

 

* * *

 

 

"You're right! You mark does look similar to the one they're finding."

"You little…get off!"

After much struggling, Aishu finally managed to roll over, knocking them both off the bed. They hit the floor with a soft thud, Aishu landing on top. The brunette then opened her mouth to snap at the other, angry about what had happened, but froze at the image that lay before her.

" _Hana…_ "

Upon falling, the two had landed with their faces only inches apart. Almost immediately, Aishu was lost in the scent of the honey and flowers that emanated from the girl's silver hair.

" _She's an angel,_ " she found herself thinking. That had to be it. Only an angel could look the way Hana did right then, with skin so soft and light that it seemed to glow. In that moment, Aishu found herself wanting to touch it, to gently caress that cheek just to see if it was as soft as it looked.

" _Of course it'll be. She's an angel, remember?"_

As Aishu looked into Hana's eyes, those violets orbs that reminding her of springtime, she began to realize how much they latched onto her heart. She realized how easily she could become entranced by that mere stare. Aishu also realized that Hana was looking right back at her with the same adoration and the same warmth she herself was showing. However, there was something else, too. Something that seemed to dim the springtime a little.

" _Sadness?_ '

Why was Hana sad? Did it mean that she really was crying before Aishu came in?

" _Why so sad_?"

A weird little pang went through her heart at the thought of this. The brunette didn't like the idea of Hana being upset. Was there a way she could fix it?

Looking down now, her eyes flicked onto the girl's small, pink lips, her mind instantly falling back to the day of their almost first kiss. Though she had hid and denied it, she really did want to feel those lips against hers.

" _I know it would have beautiful. What if I-_ "

"Aishu… _"_

Though Hana, who was still looking at the girl with such warmth, spoke softly, it was enough to break Aishu from her train of thought, and in doing so, Aishu soon realized that whatever she had been thinking and feeling seemed to have taken control of her body movements. One hand had found its way to Hana's cheek, cupping it gently, the other intertwined in the soft silver locks. Their faces were also dangerously close.

"Aishu. _"_

Aishu let out a small gasp and sat up, wasting no time in quickly pushing away and standing up.

"I'm sorry," she told Hana softly, her face a deep scarlet.

Hana stood up, brushing some of the wrinkles out of her uniform.

"Don't be," she replied in the same soft tone. Hana opened her mouth again to speak, but nothing came out, Aishu doing the same. They both had more to say, more they wanted to share, but it was Aishu who was still a little fearful of it all, so instead, the younger girl walked to the door.

"I should go. U-um, if possible, Hikaru and I would like to go this afternoon."

"All right," Hana said back. "I'll go let Mrs. Maria now, and I'll join you for the trip as well."

"Thank you."

With those final words, Aishu opened the door and headed back to her dorm.


	6. Chapter Six

Chapter 6

"I can't believe this is happening."

A few hours after the mini incident in Hana's dorm, a very worked up Aishu sat on the cement stairs outside the entrance of the school. The Pearl hadn't arrived for their outing yet and Hikaru was finishing her room attendant duties with the second pearl, Rai Murasaki.

"What got into me?" she mumbled. "Did I really want to kiss her? No, no I didn't. There's no way I wanted to. Bah, this is all her fault. If she wasn't so cute, or so funny, or have that beautiful smile, or if she wasn't trying to kiss me herself, then…. Oh no. I did want to kiss her. I really do like her, don't I?"

Aishu covered her face in embarrassment.

"There's way too much going on right now. I can't handle this, too."

"You all right over there?"

Aishu jumped and turned to the voice.

"A-Aiko-oneesama!" she exclaimed, quickly jumping up and giving a small bow.

"Calm down, Aishu-chan," she told her with a giggle. "Don't look so scared."

"Sorry…"

"No apologies needed," Aiko replied, taking a seat. "So, what brings you out here?"

"Just waiting for a few people," the brunette answered while taking her seat again as well. "Hana-Oneesama, Hikaru-chan, and I are going out for a bit."

"Oh really? Where to?"

"Ice cream," Aishu lied. This was the excuse the three had come up with had someone asked. "Some place in the middle of the city. Hana-oneesama said the location was a surprise."

"That's great!" Aiko said. "Hana-Oneesama is really nice. I think it's cute you have a crush on her."

"Wait, wh-what?" The girl stuttered out, blushing deeply. "C-crush? What m-makes you think I h-have a crush?"

"Oh, I don't know, something about her being cute, funny, and also something about a kiss."

Aishu immediately hid her face in her hands again, blushing even deeper. Her rambles had been discovered.

"I can't believe you heard that. Okay, maybe I have some kind of feeling, but that's all it is! A small, teeny tiny feeling. Nothing big, but please don't tell anyone. Ne, you must think I'm crazy."

"I would never tell a single soul," the older girl said back. "I don't think you're crazy either. I think it's wonderful you feel something. Any kind of feeling like that, whether it's a crush or something more, is amazing."

"If it's so amazing, then why does it feel so damn confusing?"

Aiko simply giggled.

"That's just what those kinds of feelings do to you, I guess. I honestly don't know too much about it. Never really been in love. If you're confused, why don't you tell your parents about it? They seem like the definition of love. I'm sure they could help you."

"I thought about that," Aishu said softly. "Honestly, I want to. I usually tell them everything, but lately, with all these slave attacks, they've been busy and stressed out. I'm worried that I'll just add more stress to them, and I really don't want to do that."

That was the honest truth. Aishu had been meaning to talk to them for a while now. Not so much about the mark quite yet, but more about Hana. She really needed some "Mom" advice, but she could never really find the right time. She may have had stresses of her own, but her parents' problems were much bigger, so she kept herself quiet.

"I'll tell them eventually, but right now, I don't want to get in their way."

"Don't be silly, Aishu-Chan. What makes you think you'll get in their way? You're their daughter."

"I know, but-"

"No buts about it," Aiko cut in. "It may be true that they have a lot on their minds, but that doesn't mean they won't want to listen to you. As I said, you're their daughter, and if they loved you, then they'd want you to go to them with whatever problem you have, big or small."

Aishu couldn't help but smile, that familiar warmth she got when she thought about her parents returning.

"Yeah, you're right. I should just tell them. They  _are_  my parents after all. Why wouldn't they want me confiding? I've probably been worrying about nothing."

"Exactly," Aiko told her. "Unless they came up to you and say that they don't have time to listen to what you have to say, which will never happen, then I think you have nothing to worry about.

"Ai-chan!"

Turning, Aishu found Hikaru exiting the building and waved over to her. She also saw that, along with the Coral, was a certain someone else.

" _Oh wow…_ "

Following closely behind her best friend was none other than Hana, the girl looking stunning in her Pearl uniform as always. There was nothing different about the way the sixteen year old looked, but Aishu was still entranced.

"You know, I've been told that it's not polite to stare," Hana said teasingly as her and Hikaru reached them, Hikaru stifling a giggle in the background.

"I was not staring!" Aishu snapped, looking away. "Why would I stare at you? Now, are we doing this or not?"

Hana giggled and nodded.

"Yes. I spoke to Mrs. Maria before coming here, so we have her okay as well."

"I'll be taking my leave then," Aiko told them, standing up. "I have a few things of my own I need to take care of today. It was nice talking to you Aishu-chan."

"You as well." She said back, bowing slightly. "Thank you for listening."

"It's never a problem. Always feel free to speak to me. See you all later."

She then turned and walked off.

"What were you guys talking about?" Hikaru asked curiously.

"Nothing serious," Aishu replied, giving a look to her friend that clearly said she would explain later. "She was just helping me with something."

Hikaru, getting the message, simply shrugged her shoulders and pulled out a piece of paper from her bag.

"All right then. Anyways, these are the directions from Irina-sensei. The store we are looking for seems to be far into the center of the city. It'll be a bit of a walk, but we should be fine."

"We also need to keep track of time," Hana told them, looking at her watch. "If it's a bit of a walk, we'll need to move fast to make it back before curfew."

"Got it," Aishu said. "Then let's get going."

 

* * *

 

 

"Finally, a moment to ourselves."

Natsuki stared down at the already naked Shizuru, the woman already lying in a very seductive position on the bed.

"You waste no time, do you?" The blunette asked with a smirk. She slipped off her blue jacket and threw it on a nearby chair, crawling on top of her lover moments after.

"Ara? Would you like me to put my clothes back on?"

The other smiled at the tease.

"Don't even think about it," Natsuki whispered while placing a gentle kiss under the brunette's ear. "If any of your clothes go back on, I may have to punish you."

"Oh no," Shizuru replied, a fake look of worry on her face. "Not that. I hate getting punished."

"Oh really?" Natsuki asked, letting her kisses slowly trail down her wife's soft body. "What a shame because honestly, I think you deserve some sort of punishment. You've been a very bad girl after all."

Moving lower, Natsuki placed a flutter of kisses on Shizuru's inner thighs, sending shockwaves through the brunette's body. The constant gasps and moans were like music to her ears, and the lightness of this teasing was like torment for Shizuru.

"Mmm, Natsuki doesn't waste time, does she?" Shizuru half whimpered.

Natsuki smirked.

"Are you complaining? If you are, I can simply just…stop."

"Don't you dare," Shizuru said back slyly. "I want you to-"

_Riiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnng!_

Natsuki dropped her head with a plop onto the woman's leg and let out an exasperated sigh.

"You have got to be kidding me," she mumbled, getting up and reaching for the phone. "This had better be pretty damn important. Hello?"

"Principal!" It was Youko-sensei. "We've just received a reading from another slave. Somewhere near the middle of the city."

" _Dammit,_ " Natsuki thought to herself. Was she ever going to get some quality time with her wife?

"All right. Shizuru and I will handle this one. We'll be there in a moment."

Hanging up the phone, she cursed, angry at the fact that she was, yet again, interrupted.

"These slaves are really starting to piss me off."

"Have you noticed these attacks increasing?" Shizuru asked as the two got dressed again. "This is the third one in the last two weeks."

"I need to find out why," Natsuki said back, the two heading out the door and down the hall once they were fully clothed. "Having as many as we have been is not normal. Aiko!"

As they were heading down, Aiko happened to be heading in the opposite direction.

"Principal? Shizuru-Oneesama?"

"I want you to come with us," Natsuki told her. "There's been another slave attack."

"Another?" She asked, now following them. "Where?"

"Somewhere in the center of Windbloom," Shizuru answered.

"Got it," Aiko replied. "Wait, did you just say the center?"

"Yes," Natsuki answered. "Why?"

"That's not good! Aishu is out there!"

"What?" Natsuki stopped dead in her tracks and turned to look at the Pearl. "What do you mean she's out there?"

"She said she was heading there earlier today," Aiko told her. "Though I don't know where specifically. Hikaru and Hana are with her as well."

"Natsuki, they're in danger out there," Shizuru spoke, slight panic in her voice. "We need to hurry."

"Dammit!" Natsuki shouted. "If anything happens to them…if anything happens to her…"

The three then sped down the hall, materializing the moment they were outside and flew towards the city.

 

* * *

 

 

"What? Nothing?"

Hikaru stood at the front counter of the bookstore, her mouth dropping upon hearing the news.

"What do you mean you have nothing?"

The older guy at the counter just shook his head.

"I'm really sorry, miss, but I've really got nothing on what you're looking for."

"But you're Kenpatchi, right?" Hikaru asked. "Irina-sensei said you'd have something."

"When it comes to ancient symbols and such, I always do," he said apologetically. "However, for the subject concerning these things you call Hime marks, I'm afraid I'm out. I vaguely remember having an incredibly old volume in my collection some time ago that had something about them, but someone bought it."

Aishu sighed and leaned back against the counter.

" _Well this is great,_ " she thought to herself. " _All this way for nothing. I was hoping for a little bit of information._ "

"Are you sure you have nothing?" Hana asked. "Even if it's small?"

"I'm very sorry. I honestly don't. If I had known the subject was on this, I would have called to save you the trip."

"It's all right," Hana told him. "Thank you for your help anyways."

The three then gave a small bow and turned to leave the building, but before they could, a loud crashing noise was heard, causing the building itself to shake.

"What the hell was that?" Hikaru asked.

Running outside, the three found themselves facing a slave only a few feet in front of them.

"Holy jeeze!" Hikaru gawked. "It's huge!"

The slave turned its head at the sound, its gaze narrowing on the three before fully focusing on Aishu and letting out a roar.

"This way!" Hana shouted. They ran down the sidewalk and through the streets, hoping they could get around it. Without being able to materialize, there was nothing they could do.

"We need to get back to the school!" Hikaru shouted.

"Otome are probably already on their way here," Hana said back. "We-ah!"

The slave took off from where it was, jumping through the air and landing a few feet in front of them.

"What can we do," Aishu whispered, looking around for a place to hide. It wasn't the greatest idea, but with no robes, what other option was there?

" _Use your child_."

"What?" Aishu asked, turning to see who the speaker was, but no one was there. Then, out of nowhere, her mark started to burn.

"Ahh!"

Aishu fell to her knees in pain.

"Ai-chan!" Hana called in panic. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

"I'm f-fine," Aishu muttered. "We need to go."

She reached behind her and rubbed the area.

" _What's going on?"_

"Aishu!"

Aishu looked up to find Shizuru flying down to them, closely followed by Aiko.

"Mom!" Aishu shouted back. She looked around to find Natsuki and almost panicked when she saw her fighting the slave on her own. She knew these slaves were much stronger, so could her mother handle it alone?

Before she could say anything about it, Aishu felt herself being scooped up and was now in her Mother's arms as they flew away from the sight, Hikaru and Hana with Aiko.

"Mom," she whispered, wrapping her arms around Shizuru's neck. "Mom, what about Natsu-kaachan?"

"She'll be all right," the woman replied. "I promise, everyone will be all right."

The two quickly flew the girls back to the school, letting them down once they hit the entrance. Mrs. Maria had been waiting there.

"Hana, please stay with them," Shizuru told the Pearl. "Mrs. Maria will take you inside. Aiko, come back with me."

Aiko nodded and the two made their way back to the slave.

"Come girls," Mrs. Maria told them, ushering them away.

Aishu didn't move, her eyes locked on the fight. She could just see the battle from where she was standing. Although she knew her parents were very strong and quite capable of fending for themselves, it still didn't stop her from worrying. She didn't know what she would do if she ever lost them.

"Ai-chan…"

Aishu felt a warm hand slip into hers. Looking back, she found Hana beside her.

"They'll be ok," she whispered. "They always are. Let's go wait for them, yeah?"

Aishu nodded, for once not pulling away from Hana's grasp, and though she didn't want to, she followed the rest inside.

 

* * *

 

 

Now in Natsuki's office, Aishu stared out of the rather large glass window. The battle had ended about ten minutes ago, and she was impatiently waiting for her parents return. Reaching back, she rubbed her mark again, the burn still remaining.

" _Why did it burn all of a sudden?_ " She wondered. " _And where did that voice come from? Use my child? What did that mean?_ "

It was in that wave of questions did the office doors finally open, Shizuru the first to walk in.

"Mom!" she shouted, running towards her. "Mom, I-"

"What the hell do you think you were doing?"

From behind Shizuru came Natsuki, the blunette rushing in angrily and stopping dead in her tracks once she reached her daughter.

"Wait, what?"

"Don't what me!" Natsuki snapped. "What the hell were you doing out there? You could have been killed!"

"Mom, I was-"

"That slave was dangerous! Without being able to materialize Aishu, you would have been a sitting duck! You wouldn't have lasted!"

"Mom, I-"

"You're in so much trouble! You're lucky we were there to save you!"

"Mom, will you just listen!" Aishu was really confused on where all the anger was coming from. "I-"

"No! I don't have time to listen to your excuses right now! Your Mother and I do everything we can to protect this school as well as you and this is how you thank us? You're not even supposed to leave the grounds without permission or-"

"They did have permission."

Aishu, who was already on the verge of tears, looked past Natsuki to find Mrs. Maria standing by the door.

"They wanted to get out for a bit, so Hana-Oneesama gave them permission as long as she was with them. Hana even double checked it through me and I gave them my okay. They only went out to a café for a little while to get some ice cream."

The blunette looked back down at Aishu.

"Is that true?"

Aishu didn't answer, the girl unable to look up at her Mom. Granted, the whole café thing was a lie, but everything else was true. Hana had given them permission, and so did Mrs. Maria. She felt a little bad for lying, but now, at this point, she didn't even care. Technically, she did nothing wrong. She had gotten all the permission she needed, so her Mother didn't have a reason to be this mad.

"Aishu…" Natsuki said softly.

"Just forget it," Aishu told her, a little hurt. "You don't have time to listen to my excuses, remember? Just drop it."

Before anyone could say anything else, she ran out door and into the hallway, slamming the door behind her.

"What the hell was her issue? She didn't even give me chance to speak."

After reaching her dorm, she plopped on the bed and snuggled up close to a pillow. Those actions weren't like her Mother at all. Natsuki never went off on her like that for no reason.

"Whatever," Aishu mumbled as she snuggled deep under the blankets. A wave of tiredness was coming over her. With the attack, it would be awhile before her parents would be free again, which, for Aishu right now, was a good thing. After being nothing but worried the whole fight, she was a little hurt by Natsuki's reaction, in turn leaving her not wanting their attention at the moment

"You don't need her. You don't need them in general, not to talk to anyways. You can handle things on your own."

Aishu could feel her lids shutting. She was up a bit late the night before and the warmth she now felt from the blankets was inviting. The burning she had felt, for some unknown reason, also left her feeling drained. She recalled feeling that way when it hit her the first time, but the adrenaline rush from the attack had let her fight it.

"I shouldn't be this tired, but…"

She was so irritated and annoyed at this point that she wanted nothing more than to disappear beneath them. Reaching back behind her, she felt her mark again, the burning no longer there.

" _I still don't know why it started burning in the first place, and I still don't know where those words came from. I'll have to tell Hana and Hikaru later. Maybe they can help me, and Irina-sensei, maybe she can help me, too. Maybe she knows something. Maybe…_ "

Before her thought process could finish, her tiredness got the best of her and she fell fast asleep.


	7. Chapter Seven

Chapter 7

"Maybe you should take a break."

Natsuki, tired as ever, was hunched over a pile of paperwork stacked in front of her, and she was not liking a single moment of it. Between running the school and dealing with slaves, she was overly stressed and was doing nothing to let it go. Not even the warm feeling of her wife's arms around her neck seemed to pull her away from her work.

"I can't," Natsuki replied as she flipped through the papers. They had been sitting there for the last few days and she was determined to finish the pile. "There's just way too much to do."

"I know, but you shouldn't kill yourself over it," Shizuru said back. "All you've been doing is work. You haven't even been eating enough or sleeping right. It wouldn't hurt to just take a small break and-"

"I don't have time for breaks!" Natsuki snapped, quickly standing up from her chair and turning to face Shizuru. "You don't get it! I don't have time to sit around like you do! I have student reports to look at, an investigation going on, slave attacks to worry about, meetings to go to-"

"A life to live, a wife who misses you, and a child who's too afraid to even come near you because you're always like this."

Natsuki quieted for a moment, feeling the sting of Shizuru's words. She could see the tears forming in those usually happy crimson eyes and immediately felt guilty for saying what she honestly didn't mean. Sighing, she reached for Shizuru's hand.

"No," Shizuru said angrily. "Since you seem to think that I sit around all the time while  _you_  do the work, then I'll leave you be."

She walked past Natsuki and headed towards the door.

"Shizuru, please!" She said, quickly grabbing the woman's hand before she could go any farther.

Shizuru looked back at her, tears already falling down her cheeks. Without a word, Natsuki pulled her into a hug, and though the other didn't push away, she wasn't welcoming it either.

"I'm sorry," Natsuki whispered. "Honey, I really didn't mean what I said. I know you work as hard as I do. You're always helping me and you're always by my side. I appreciate that so much. I have no idea what I'd do without you."

Shizuru's body seemed to release some of its tension at this statement.

"I don't mean to act this way," Natsuki continued. "It's just, it seems like I can't get a break from anything lately. Every time I want to relax, something always comes up. I mean, I can't even have sex with you without getting some kind of phone call. How sad is that? No sex!"

This caused Shizuru to break into a light giggle. Hearing it relaxed the principal a bit.

"I mean, sure we've been having a little fun here and there," the blunette told her. "However, I miss those really intense moments where we, you know, do our special little  _thing_."

Shizuru pulled back and rested her forehead on the others with a soft but playful smile.

"Our  _thing_ , hmm?" She asked teasingly. She couldn't help but picture Natsuki in that lovely position they both loved. "I know, I miss it, too."

"If everything just didn't hit at once," Natsuki mumbled. "It's like, no matter what I do, something always comes up. A phone call, a meeting, another attack…most of it has to do with the investigation still going on. What's even more frustrating is that it's already summer vacation and we still haven't found any clues behind these slave attacks or the meaning behind the dark Hime mark. We have a few bits of new information with the slaves, but other than that, nothing major. I'm really hoping that this next meeting will clear some things up."

Shizuru pulled away as Natsuki walked back and sat down in her chair.

"I'm sure it will," the brunette told her as she followed. Slipping behind the woman, she let her fingers give a gentle massage to Natsuki's shoulders. "I mean, look at who the source is. She's always had very useful information for us."

Shizuru placed a kiss on her wife's head.

"I'm sorry if I got a little upset, too" she continued. " I know you don't mean to act the way you have been. I know you're stressed, but that's all the more reason you should take time to relax, even if it's just for a few hours."

"I know, " Natsuki replied softly. "I know."

They were silent for a moment, the massage doing wonders for the tired principal. Though her body was beginning to relax, her mind and her chest were still all over the place, particularly on another previously mentioned subject.

"So, Ai-chan really can't stand to be around me?"

Shizuru sighed and squeezed her shoulders comfortingly.

"I think she wants to be. She just doesn't know how to anymore. Ever since you snapped after that slave attack last month, she's kind of distanced herself from you. Well, from both of us, and that worries me. She doesn't even come around on the weekends anymore."

Natsuki crossed her arms over the top of her desk and plopped her head down. She knew she had been too hard on Aishu that day, and she also knew she'd been a little too snappy with her even after that, all out frustration. She really didn't mean to, and it hurt to know that she played a part in Aishu pushing away.

"I've got to be the worst Mother in the world."

Shizuru leaned back against the desk and ran her fingers through the woman's dark hair.

"No you're not. I know you love her very much and she knows that, too. You're just going through a tough time right now. We both are. I didn't mean to make it sound like you were a bad Mom. I'm just worried. This family is my whole life, and I'll do whatever it takes to keep us together."

Peering up, she saw those tears reappearing in her wife's eyes.

"Shizuru…"

Natsuki stood back up and wrapped the woman in another warm hug.

"This family is my whole life, too. I don't want you to think otherwise. You guys mean everything to me and I'd do anything and everything to keep us together."

A smile grew on Shizuru's face.

"Natsuki…"

She wrapped her arms tighter around the blunette and pulled her closer.

"I know this family means a lot to you, too, and that you'd do anything for us. Know that we'd do anything for you, as well."

Natsuki smiled right back.

"Thank you," she said, pulling away. "You know what, how about tonight, wait, no, how about right after this next meeting, the three of us spend some time together. Unless it's an absolute dire emergency, nothing will get in the way. Just you, me, and our little Ai-chan. That is, if we can get her down here."

"That won't be too hard," Shizuru said with a smirk. "She's not as hard headed as she used to be. All you have to do is soften her up a bit and she's all yours, but  _you_  have to be the one to do it."

"I think I can handle that," Natsuki said back, leaning in to nuzzle at the woman's cheek. "Then, once she's asleep, I do believe you and I have something we need to do."

"Oh, really?" Shizuru purred. "I can't seem to remember what that thing was."

"Oh I'll help you remember " Natsuki told her before wrapping her lover in a passionate kiss.

* * *

Between exams, research, and missing her parents, Aishu failed to realize how quick time had been going by. Before she knew it, summer vacation had started. Normally, she would've been staying at her summer house with her family but, with the reoccurring slave attacks, Natsuki thought it was best to stay at the school. Luckily for Aishu, Hikaru would also be remaining at the school since her parents were out excavating in Artai. Hana was the only one out of the trio who, much to Aishu's hidden dismay, had left.

" _This'll be perfect,_ " Aishu thought to herself. She had just arrived at the school track in her gym uniform. She had plans to do some running with Hikaru since it wasn't a scorching hot day. " _We'll be able to get some more research done since it's break._ "

While waiting for Hikaru, she decided to plop down against the cool grass. Sighing, she looked up at the cloudless sky, the thought of her parents and what they might be doing suddenly swimming through her mind.

"What does it matter," she mumbled. "Probably in another stupid meeting."

It had been awhile since she spent some quality time with her parents, especially with Natsuki. The woman never really apologized for snapping the day they did research. Instead, she just acted like it never happened and got lost in more work. Aishu tried forgetting about it herself, but then Natsuki began nagging her about everything, snapping at the littlest of things, so she found it hard to do so. After a while, it got really annoying to the point where she didn't want to be around her parents anymore. She just stayed with Hikaru on the weekends. Quite a few times, Shizuru had found her and tried getting her to stay with them, but Aishu always made some kind of excuse on why she couldn't.

"I really do miss them though," she whispered. It hurt not being able to spend time with them. She loved them both very much, but it was just hard being around them right now, especially with the secret she was keeping.

"Hey, you."

Aishu jumped at the voice and sat up.

"Wait, Hana-oneesama?" Aishu was shocked to see her. Silently happy, yes, but shocked. "I thought you left for your parents last week."

"I did, but I'm back now," she replied, taking a seat beside the brunette. "For the summer. They had some travelling to do so…"

Aishu watched as Hana preoccupied herself with some grass, her eyes having that worried look again.

"Are you ok?" The younger girl asked.

"Perfectly."

"You're lying."

Hana looked up a little surprised.

"I'm lying?" She asked, half amused. "What makes you think that?"

"I can just tell," Aishu replied. "I've known you long enough to tell when you're upset and when you're okay. Something's not right, and it hasn't been with you for a while."

Aishu knew something was up, but the other girl wouldn't tell her. She desperately wanted to know because, although she didn't exactly show it, she hated seeing Hana sad and worried like that. She wanted to do something, anything, to help her.

"Aishu-chan!"

Another voice now called out for her. Turning to look, she found Hikaru running towards her with a paper in her hand.

"Aishu-chan! You have to see this!" She said as she reached her. "Oh, Hana-oneesama?"

"Hello, Hikaru-chan."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm back for the summer," Hana answered. "Something with the family came up."

"Oh, well okay then! You should see this, too! It's amazing!" The pink haired female handed the paper over to Aishu, the brunette taking it with curiosity. "It's from my parents. Remember how I sent them a picture of your mark? They got back to me with some really good information!"

Aishu began reading the letter, her eyes widening as she mumbled bits and pieces out loud.

"Hime mark, light, creating a light element, summoning a child, battle over 300 years ago…"

Aishu's head spun a bit, the girl trying to take in all the information as she handed the paper over to Hana.

"Hold on, the mark means light?" Aishu asked. "What's that supposed to mean, and what do they mean by whoever has that mark can control an element, and a Child? I don't get it. You sure this is legit?"

"Mhm! I even called my parents after getting this to confirm it," Hikaru replied. "See, that mark you have on you was also on another Otome who lived over 300 years ago. She was known as the Light Hime. Apparently, she went into battle with another who had the dark Hime mark and won. There's a lot more to it, but my parents didn't really know the rest."

"Are you serious?" Aishu asked. "That's just so weird. We never came across anything like this during research."

"They said they found it buried in some well hidden underground cave in Artai. They discovered it about a year ago, but didn't think anything of it. Artai is an incredibly old state. A lot of old artifacts have been found there, so they thought it was just some story. They were pretty shocked when I asked them about it."

"Odd," Hana said. "You'd something like this would at least be in the Artai history books."

"Perhaps not many witnessed it the event. " Hikaru suggested.

Aishu was silent for a moment as she thought this through.

"All right, I'm still not sure what this all means, but if definitely explains a lot," she said. "I have no idea what a Child is, but, like I told you, I do remember hearing someone whisper it to me that day in the city. The letter also says that the one with this mark can control the element of light, which would explain the light shield I was able to use, but, with all of this happening to me, that would mean-"

"That you're the Light Hime."

All three girls jumped and turned at the voice that came from behind them. When Aishu realized who it was, her eyes widened. Was she seeing things?

The figure smiled at little Aishu's shock.

"Hello, it's nice to see you again, Miss."

 


	8. Chapter Eight

Chapter 8

Hana and Hikaru stared, with a little confusion, at the stranger that stood a few feet from them. Aishu, on the other hand let out a little gasp, a small smile growing on her face.

"Wait, who are-"

"Miyu-chan!"

Aishu immediately ran towards the woman and wrapped her in a tight hug.

"Hello, Miss," Miyu said again with a smile, embracing the girl right back.

"Miyu-chan…"

As the two hugged, the girl could feel tears forming in her eyes. She wasn't entirely sure where they had come from, but feeling the warm embrace from Miyu seemed to break something inside of her. It had been quite a long time since she had a good hug like this.

"Miyu-chan, I've missed you so much. Where have you been? I haven't seen you since last summer."

Peeking up, she spotted a little yellow bird sitting on the woman's shoulder, smiling at the small creature. "Hello to you, too, Alyssa-chan!" The bird chirped happily in reply.

"I've missed you, too," Miyu said back. "I've been doing a lot of travelling lately, collecting bits of information I need. There's something I'm looking for."

"What is it?"

Miyu smiled and placed her hand on the child's head.

"You'll find out soon enough, I promise." Her brows then furrowed. "Miss, are you alright? Why are you crying?"

She looked up at the other two females behind the young Kruger.

"Are those girls bothering you?"

"No!" Aishu replied quickly, wiping away her tears as she tried to ease the other's worry. She knew how protective Miyu was of her. "Really. They're my best friends, and they're always very good to me."

Taking the woman by the hand, she walked over to the two girls.

"Miyu-chan, these are my friends, Hikaru Kokoru and Hana Michiko."

"Nice to meet you," they both said politely with a bow.

"This is Miyu," she told them. "I met her not long after I was adopted. She's very much like a sister to me."

Miyu simply nodded at the girls and then returned her gaze to Aishu.

"If they're not the reason you're crying, then why are you? I can see that something is bothering you. Did something happen?"

"No," Aishu lied. She almost forgot how perceptive Miyu was when it came to how she felt. "I'm just a little stressed."

Well, it was more like extremely stressed. Between her normal school related activities, she was also doing extra research on her mark and its connection to the current cases with the slaves. Now, with the new information Hikaru gave her, she'd be doing even more work to figure thing out. Usually, when her stress got bad, a simple hug or some quality time with her parents always did the trick, but with barely being on speaking terms with them, she didn't have that escape anymore, only adding even more stress. Her friends truly did help when things got a little too crazy for her, but nothing beat the special time she would get with her two Mothers. Seeing someone like Miyu right now, and having that hug feel as good as it did, reminded the girl of how much she really missed her parents.

"Things have been a little crazy lately is all. It's nothing I can't handle."

She clearly heard what the child was telling her, but didn't believe it, knowing full well she was hiding something.

"You're worrying me," Miyu told her. "Your light, that light I usually see shine so brightly, seems to have faded a bit."

"My light?" Aishu asked, a little confused. "I don't have a light."

"Or do you…" Hikaru said softly, now walking a little closer to the older woman. "Miyu-san, when you first got here, you called her the light Hime, didn't you?"

"That's right," Aishu piped in, her brows furrowing as she thought about it. She was so distracted by the sight of Miyu that she had momentarily forgotten about that small piece of information. "Why did you call me that?"

"It's what you are," Miyu replied. "I've been watching you for a while now. I saw what happened the very first time a slave attacked here. I saw that shield come up when you were protecting that girl."

"That girl was me," Hana spoke. Moving to Aishu's side, she stared at the young girl with a serious gaze.

"Ai-chan, show her your mark. If she's got more information…"

Without a second thought, she quickly turned and pulled her shirt up a bit, exposing the symbol to the other. Miyu placed her finger on the mark and gently rubbed it.

"That confirms everything. You are indeed the light Hime, which means that there's more to come for you. You'll need to awaken your child, and soon, in order to defeat the dark Hime."

"Wait, what?" Aishu asked. "Now I'm really lost. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I'll explain more during the meeting with your parents," Miyu told her. "In knowing you contain this mark, they're going to want to hear everything I have to say."

"Miyu-chan, um, they…they don't know about it."

The woman went quiet for a moment.

"Miss, you haven't told them?"

"She hasn't really gotten a chance to," Hikaru said. "Her parents have been all over the place because of these slave attacks and haven't really been paying much attention to her at all, especially Principal. We've spent the last couple of months trying to find some information ourselves, but we haven't found any. Only today did we have a small break through from a letter my parents sent me."

Hearing this, Miyu knelt down to Aishu's height.

"Is this true?"

Aishu could feel her eyes tearing up again, but did her best to hold them back.

"Yes," she answered. "Shizu-kaachan hasn't really been bad, just really busy and has even tried to get me to come around, but Natsu-kaachan is always mad at me or mad about something, so I've just stayed away from both. It's been really hard for me to talk to them. Please don't tell them about it yet, Miyu-chan, please? It'll only cause more problems."

Though the woman knew that telling was the better option, she decided to give the young girl a little more time.

"I won't. Not yet, anyways, but they'll have to know soon. They're your parents. They need to know these things about you."

"I know," Aishu said back. "I'll tell them soon. I promise."

Miyu then placed her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"You shouldn't avoid them either. Things may be hectic, but no matter what, you are their daughter and they love you more than anything. I'm sure that if you tell them how you feel, you'll all be able to fix things."

Aishu just shrugged her shoulder, Miyu now standing back up.

"Come on. I have a meeting with your parents to get to. I want you to hear this as well."

"I can't," Aishu said back. "They don't want me to know about anything that's been going on. They'll just kick me out of there."

"No they won't," Miyu told her. "I'll tell them otherwise and convince them to let you stay. You need to hear my words."

"Well, all right, but Hana-Oneesama and Hikaru-chan need to come, too. We've been in this together the whole time, so I want them to hear what you have to say. Hana-Oneesama won't have a problem getting in. She was already invited to go, but had originally turned it down because she was supposed to be away. Hikaru-chan might have an issue though, like me."

"Very well," she said, glancing at them all. "I'll make sure you all get in."

 

* * *

 

" _I know you wanted her to learn how to summon her Child, but_ _I thought you didn't want her to be aware that she is the light Hime. That's why you went through all that trouble to get rid of any information regarding it._ "

"I didn't want her to know," a woman replied into her green gemmed necklace. "There's no choice but to let her now. This person called Miyu will make sure she does. She's getting Aishu into the meeting."

" _Will her knowing get in the way of your plan?_ " The man asked.

"Not really, no," she replied. "After what she hears and learns today, the chance of her awakening her child will possibly increase, which is what we want. I was just hoping she'd awaken it without knowing the history. However, I still believe things will work out in our favor. How is the search coming?"

" _We're still having no luck. We only have a few clues on where the location might be, so finding it is proving to be very difficult."_

The woman sighed.

"It's important that it's found," she told him. "Especially after today. If Aishu gets her hands on it before us, she'll gain her full power. We can't let her get to it. That was another hope I had, finding what we needed before she awakened. It's okay though. Perhaps this Miyu will say something about its location. I'll have to see. I must go now. I'll contact you later."

She then hit the small button on her necklace and walked down the school hallway.

 

* * *

 

" _I hope this works. Then again, it's Miyu. She can make anything work._ "

Aishu put her hand on her stomach, which was now in knots. She was hoping that in seeing her parents, nothing would go wrong. No arguments, no awkwardness, nothing.

"Are you all right?" Hikaru asked.

"Yeah," the brunette replied. "I'm okay."

Hana slipped her hand into Aishu's and held it, catching the young girl off guard.

"Don't worry," she told her, knowing exactly what was on the younger girl's mind. "Things will be fine. I'm sure they'll be happy to see you."

Aishu, liking the comfort, squeezed her hand, turning her head away to hide the small smile and the blush that grew on her face."

"Thanks," she said softly.

After a few more minutes, they reached the door. Miyu didn't even bother knocking and just opened it up, walking inside. Both her parents, Miss. Maria, and Yukariko-sensei were in there.

"Miyu…" Natsuki stood up from her chair.

Miyu simply nodded at the four women.

"Hello, Miyu-san." Shizuru greeted with a smile. "It's nice to see you again."

"You as well."

It was then the older brunette suddenly giggled, her eyes falling to the mini group that followed their visitor inside.

"It seems that you've picked up some strays along your way here, yes?"

"I brought them for the meeting," Miyu replied.

"This is a private investigation," Natsuki told her. "Hana, as well as the next three Pearls, are already involved, but I don't want other students getting mixed in."

"Hikaru and Aishu are not just  _other students,_ " Miyu countered "They're your top two Corals. Why not bring them in as well? You may find that you'll need their help in the future."

"We're really eager to help," Hikaru told her. "We've been interested these cases since the beginning, and we'll do whatever you ask us, promise!"

"I think you should let them," Hana piped in. "They're both very smart and clever. As Miyu-san said, they may prove to be a lot of help to us."

"They have a point," Miss Maria added. "While they still have much to learn, they both have skill. They may be able to help."

The blunette sighed.

"Why do I get the feeling that they already know most of what's been going on anyways?"

Hana just innocently smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

"I have no idea why you would think that, Principal."

Natsuki could only snicker.

"You guys probably know more than us, don't you?"

"To be honest, not really." Hikaru replied. "I mean, we have been researching since the day of the first attack, but we haven't found much. However, we did get some really good information from my parents this morning."

Aishu's mouth dropped at this.

"Hikaru!"

"What?" the pink haired female asked, an evil grin spreading across her face. "You heard her. She's already figured that the two of us were somewhat already involved. I mean, we both really wanted to know what was going on, and with you being Hana-oneesama's lover, it wasn't hard getting all of the information we were looking for."

Aishu's face turned five different shades of red.

"Lover? That's a lie! What are you-"

"That's right!" Hana quickly clung to Aishu's arm and nuzzled it happily. "They really did want to know what was going on because they wanted to help, and with Ai-chan being so cute, it was hard to say no."

"B-baka!" Aishu shouted, pulling away. "You guys are both crazy!"

Both girls, along with Shizuru, were now giggling.

Natsuki, who was trying very hard to stifle her own giggles, simply cleared her throat.

"In that case, you girls might as well stay. However, if we do need your help in the future, you'll follow every command we give you, and tell no one else about this."

"Hai! Captain!" Hikaru said, giving a quick salute before following Hana and taking a seat on the couch. Aishu decided to stay put, half hiding behind Miyu.

"We can get this meeting started anytime," Natsuki told her old friend. "Meister Arika and the Queen had some emergency business to attend to, so they will not be joining us today. Neither will the Pearls Aiko, Rei, and Utau. I assigned them to other duties. Hana, I trust you will relay the information back to them."

Hana nodded in reply.

"No worries about Meister Arika or the Queen," Miyu added. "I've already told them what I'm about to tell you."

The blunette nodded.

"Well, then there's just one more thing before we begin. Ai-chan, can you come over here for a moment?"

Aishu, curious at this sudden request, peeked out to look at her Mother.

"Why?"

"You'll see. Just come here."

Reluctantly, Aishu stepped out and walked over. Hopefully it was a quick thing so she could get away, however, she soon saw that escaping would not be the case for when she was only a few feet from her mother, Natsuki reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling the girl onto her lap.

"What the-mom, what are you doing?" The girl asked, feeling the woman's arm sneak around her waist. She tried getting back up, but Natsuki pulled back.

"What? A mom can't hold her kid?"

"Not here! Isn't this a meeting?"

"And?"

"You can't hold me during a meeting!"

"Oh yes I can," she said with a smirk. " I'm the Principal and I can do what I want. I'm going to hold you and keep holding you and there's nothing you can do about it."

"But mom-"

"Shhh," Natsuki said, placing a finger on her lips and winking. She then placed a quick kiss on Aishu's cheek. "The meeting's about to start."

Aishu could hear her friends giggling in the back ground and shot them a death like glare. Assuming she was going to lose the fight, she decided to just sit still, the girl crossing her arms over her chest with a small pout.

"So Miyu, what information have you found for us?" Natsuki asked.

"It's about the Hime marks and the meanings behind them," she answered.

"Marks?" Shizuru asked. "There's only one, though."

"Only one that you know of," Miyu said back. "There are actually two in existence. These symbols, also known as the dark Hime and light Hime marks, haven't been seen in the last three hundred years, not since the last two Otome who possessed them fought."

"Fought as in there was a battle?" Miss Maria asked.

"There was. However, you will not find much information about it in history books. For a battle as important as this, not many people were around to witness it. It started with, as I mentioned before, two Otome. One, who possessed the powers of the light Hime mark, and another who possessed the powers of the dark Hime mark. They both had the ability to control their respective element, as well as summon a Child. For those of you who do not know what a Child is, it's a creature a Hime is able to summon when going into battle."

" _I can summon a child?_ "

Aishu shuffled a bit at the thought, her Mom holding her a little closer when she sensed her mild uncomfortableness.

"Why did the two of them fight?" Yukariko asked.

"Difference of opinion," Miyu replied. "The dark Hime wanted nothing but power and would stop at nothing to get it. The light Hime wanted peace, and would protect people from the dark Hime when need be. The people needed the light Hime for protection because they could not protect themselves. You see, only a Child can defeat another Child. So, in the end, the two ended up getting into a big battle. The light Hime won, but there was something else she failed to realize. You see, even when a Hime is not materialized, she can still summon her element and fight with her Child. However, if the Hime wanted to use her element and Child at its full power, they needed their respective gem to materialize with. The light Hime defeated the Child, killing the Dark Hime as well, but failed to destroy the dark gem the Hime was wearing. Instead, she hid it so no one could have that kind of power again. The Child may have been destroyed, but its soul still lives in that gem, so if the gem still exists, so does the Child. The light Hime hid hers as well before she died, therefore that Child still exists, too.

Miyu picked up one of the pictures from an attack that had been sitting on Natsuki's desk.

"The gems themselves can only be destroyed once a battle takes place and a Child is killed. Judging by the marks left after each attack, it seems the dark gem has been found, but the light gem still remains hidden."

"Which means the dark Hime is back." Natsuki concluded. "Why do the marks only show up after slave attacks?"

"There's a possibility she's behind them," Miyu told her. "These attacks that have been going on are far from random. I don't think she's doing this alone, so she, as well as whoever is working with her, are using the slaves as a mere distraction."

"Distraction from what?" Shizuru asked.

"Perhaps from us finding out the truth and from finding the light Hime. Or maybe to stop us from finding the light gems. It is possible that the dark Hime is trying to find and steal them before the light Hime can. It would make it easier for her to defeat the Child and then the gems. I can't be sure. I haven't been able to find the motives behind the attacks yet, but I will soon."

"Maybe she's trying to avoid a fight with the light Hime," Natsuki suggested.

"Impossible," Miyu said back. "Both Hime are in existence, so, like their ancestors, they must fight. The dark Hime is already trying to take control. The light Hime, however, hasn't awakened yet. She will need to soon. I am already on the search for the gem that is needed before they have the chance of finding it."

"Wait, does that mean you know who this Light Hime is?" Shizuru asked.

Miyu just stared back.

"That doesn't matter. She will make herself known when the time comes. She cannot be forced into doing it. For her to have a strong connection with the Child, she must choose to awaken it by her own will. If she's forced, then it will not work. Her Child will be weak, and she would be easily defeated. The stronger the emotion, the stronger the Child."

Natsuki sighed, leaning back in the chair.

"So these aren't simple slave attacks we are dealing with," she said. "There's a whole battle behind this, and there's nothing we can really do to stop the dark Hime until the light Hime comes out in the open?"

"Yes," Miyu answered. "The Child cannot be defeated without her."

"Well then, this light Hime better hurry up with it," the Principal told her. "If there's a battle brewing, then she can't be taking her time. These attacks have been going on for a long while now. What's taking her so long to fight back?"

"Perhaps she's just learning that she's the light Hime," Miyu replied, her eyes on Aishu. "As much as you would like it to happen, it is a process one cannot just "hurry up". Her powers and her Child are something she needs to discover and awaken on her own. It cannot be forced."

" _That's great,_ " the young brunette thought. " _So, I need to discover my powers more, awaken my Child, and somehow defeat this dark Hime before Mom has a fit. No pressure guys._ "

"With that being said, there is nothing else to share on this matter, so I will be taking my leave for now," Miyu told them, bowing respectively. "Leave the search for the gem to me. I'll get back to you as soon as I find it."

"Thank you," Natsuki said. "We appreciate your help."

Miyu then turned and left the room.

"Well this is great," the blunette mumbled, rubbing her temples in frustration. "This situation is even more complicated that we thought, especially with the light Hime-"

Before the line could be finished, Aishu jet off of her lap and headed for the door.

" _I don't need to hear it,_ " she thought to herself.

"Ai-chan! Where are you going?" Natsuki asked.

"Don't worry about it."

"Well, can you come back after? I need to talk to you about something."

Aishu froze, her hand on the door knob.

"I can't. I'm busy."

"You always seem to be busy when we want to see you," Shizuru said.

"Well, you're always busy when I want to see you, too," the girl replied. "That doesn't seem to bother you guys, so why should it bother me?"

She then opened the door and ran out.

"Miyu-chan!" she shouted, spotting the woman as she ran down the hall. "Miyu-chan!"

Miyu turned and stopped to let Aishu catch up with her.

"What is it Miss?"

"Miyu-chan," she spoke, stopping in front of her. "I, I don't know…"

The woman pulled her into a hug.

"Don't over worry about this. Listen, I didn't' want to mention this in the meeting, but only to you. Remember your light shield? There is a trigger to using that and the weapon that comes with being the light Hime. It's a special trigger that will activate your element. Don't ask me what it is though for it's something you need to find on your own. Although it needs to be soon, you can't just force yourself to find it, or force yourself to call your Child. Just let it happen naturally. You will know when the time is right, and when it is, I will be there to help you."

Miyu then pulled back.

"Just understand this. Don't lose that light that's inside of you. I have seen it shine so brightly and it worries me that it's dimmed a bit. Stay strong, Miss. I know you can."

Leaning down, she placed a soft kiss on the girl's head.

"I must go now. I'll be back as soon as I can."

With one last small smile, she turned and walked away.

Aishu leaned back against the wall, the story she had just heard swirling around in her mind.

"I'll try, Miyu," she whispered. "I'll try."

Turning around, she was going to head back to her parents, but stopped.

" _She better hurry up and get this done. If there's a battle brewing, then she can't be taking her time. These attacks have been going on for a long while now. What's taking her so long to fight back_?"

"Thanks, mom," she whispered. "How the hell am I supposed to tell you now? You don't make it easy. You'll probably force me to do what I apparently need to if I tell you the truth, and Miyu-chan said it can't work like that. Dammit…"

She then turned away, deciding it was better not to go back, and headed to her dorm.

 

* * *

 

 _"Well, this is an interesting turn of events,_ " the woman thought to herself, watching silently as the girl took her leave. " _She'll end up calling her Child soon. I can feel it."_

She then smirked.

"What's even better is knowing that your light is fading. I know your trigger, dear one. I know what makes your light weak. Your parents play a big part in this, and soon so will Hana. I'll just have to slowly continue pulling your precious ones away."

She walked over to the school window and looked outside.

"Just watch, Ai-chan. You won't have anyone to go to soon enough. You'll feel all alone, and then your light will fade for good. Even if you can call that Child, you're useless without your light. You'll be easily defeated. I'll kill your Child, destroy your gem, then kill you. Darkness will take over the world. I will rule."


	9. Chapter Nine

Chapter 9

Natsuki sighed irritably and hung up the phone.

"I never thought that phone conference would end."

Leaning back in her chair, she closed her eyes and grumbled.

"Don't we have another meeting today as well?"

"We do," Shizuru answered. The brunette stood behind her wife, her hands reaching out and gently massaging the woman's shoulders.

"Ne, this is annoying. We haven't had a break since we woke up," the blunette complained. "We haven't had a break for months. What's this next one supposed to be about again?"

"We're going to be discussing the recent slave attacks that have begun in Aries," Shizuru replied. "Up until last week, the attacks had only been in Windbloom. President Yukino and Haruka will be arriving this afternoon."

"Wonderful," she muttered while leaning forward and resting her head in her hand, "Just what we needed, more slave attacks."

Looking back up, emerald eyes flickered over to a nearby picture. Reaching out, she gently slid her finger down the glass. Upon seeing what Natsuki was looking at, Shizuru wrapped her arms around the woman and gently squeezed her. Not only were they still having issues with the dark Hime and the slaves, but with their daughter as well.

"I miss her, too," Shizuru whispered.

Natsuki picked up the picture and held it in her hand.

"It's been too long since we've spent some real time with her," the principal spoke. "I mean, we've tried, but either we get caught up in some long meeting or slave attacks happen or she avoids us all together. We can't win, and today, of all days to not have seen her yet…she probably thinks we've forgotten."

"We haven't though," the brunette replied. "How could we? I tried looking for her this morning, but she was nowhere to be found. I figured that after the President and Haruka leave, we could go look together."

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing, too," Natsuki said back. "Do you think she'll want to be with us?"

"I hope," Shizuru answered. "Despite what she's feeling, I would think she'd want to see us, especially today being what it is."

"You'd think, but you know her," Natsuki said back. "She's stubborn. She's upset about not spending enough time with us, but then when we try, she pulls away, so what makes you think we can get her later? She might just run off again. It's like we're damned if we try and damned if we don't."

"I know," Shizuru said with a sigh. "To be upset this long isn't like her. In all honesty, I'm starting to think something else is going on."

"You, too?" Natsuki asked, glad she wasn't the only one who suspected something odd.

"Mhm. Every time I run into her, she always seems so distracted and troubled. There's something else on her mind, but she's not telling us, and that worries me. She usually tells us everything."

"Yeah," Natsuki said sadly. "Just watch, we won't catch her at all. Even in knowing what today is, she'll probably stay away."

"Don't think that," Shizuru said, trying to comfort her wife along with herself as well. "You know she finds today very special as well. We'll see her, don't worry."

"I hope," Natsuki said softly, placing the picture back down. She really wanted to have her little girl today. "I really hope."

* * *

"You know, your sparring really sucks today."

It was about mid-morning, and both Hana and Aishu were out on the practice field for some sparring. Aishu, after being flipped onto the ground, sat back up, shooting an angry glare at her partner.

"It does not."

"It does."

"Baka," Aishu mumbled as she stood up and dusted off her robe. Although Hana was very much a teaser with Aishu, when it came down to business, she was always very blunt. However, Aishu was in a very crabby mood today, so instead of accepting the criticism and working harder like she always did, she just got angrier instead. Picking up her staff, she looked towards Hana.

"I'm sorry, but it really does," Hana told her. "Normally, you're an amazing fighter, but during these last couple of weeks, you've been making simple mistakes. Mistakes the number two Coral shouldn't be making.

"Whatever," Aishu hissed back. "Let's go again."

"No," Hana replied. "That's enough for today. You're not focused enough."

"All the more reason we should spar," Aishu told her. "It'll give me something to focus on."

"Or, you could relieve whatever stress and worries you have that are killing your focus by going and talking to your parents." Hana countered, knowing full well what was truly bothering the girl.

"Or we can just forget about all of that and just keep sparring," the brunette retorted. "One more and then we can stop. It'll be time to break after another anyways as there's still a lot of research that needs to be done."

After learning about the light and dark Hime, the three of them, especially Aishu, had spent most of their time looking, listening, and reading any information they could get their hands. They were now on their last week of summer break, September hitting them quicker than they planned. This meant the amount of free time they had would soon drop.

"Wouldn't it be done better if we included your parents?" Hana asked. "Sure, you guys are included in the investigation now, but they still keep secrets from you about it. Wouldn't it be better if they knew that you were the light Hime so they could help us out more? It would give them even more of a reason to tell you things because you're their daughter and they would want to protect you."

"We're doing fine on our own."

"No we're not!" Hana snapped. She was sick of hearing the younger girl say that when it wasn't true. "We've hardly found any new information. What, the only real new information we learned since Miyu's visit was what Irina told us about summoning your child."

Aishu sighed. Only a few days after Miyu's visit, Irina found out more about a Child. Apparently, a Hime would be able to summon it by simply calling its name, and it would protect and defend its owner in a fight. However, Aishu had no clue what name to call out. She spent most of her time researching anything she could about the legend and her Child, but could never find anything out about knowing its name.

"I'll find what I need eventually," Aishu told her. "We don't need their help."

"Are you mental?" Hana asked. "Yes we need their help! You have no clue what to call out and no clue where the light gem is either, and you need that!"

"Miyu said she'd be taking care of finding the gem" Aishu said back. "She's good at finding what she needs."

"Yes, but wouldn't it go faster if we all worked together to find it?" The other asked. "What if the dark Hime comes attacking right now? What are you going do? You can't summon your Child, and even if you could, you wouldn't be able to use it to its full potential without the gem."

Aishu let out another sigh. They both have had this argument in the past, and she knew Hana had many points, but the brunette was just too stubborn to give in.

"I know you miss them," Hana continued, her tone a little more soft. "I can see it, and I know they miss you, too."

"Yeah well, all of that mushy stuff will change the moment I tell them my secret" Aishu mumbled, her heart aching because she truly did miss them so. "I have no idea how Shizu-Kaa-chan will react, but Natsu-Kaa-chan would have a fit. She's been on edge for a long time now and I don't feel like making everything worst."

Hana let out an exasperated sigh, wanting to argue her point more but knew she'd get nowhere.

"I still think it would be better if you told them, but I can't force you. Even if you don't say anything, you should at least go and see them today. It's your-"

"Shut up," Aishu snapped quickly, not wanting to remember. "I don't care what today is. Why should I go see them? They probably don't even remember. They haven't even attempted to come see me."

Hana could kind of see her point, but she also knew they were probably busy in a meeting or something and would find her as soon as they were free.

"I'm sure they didn't forget," Hana said, her voice still soft and she placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Give it a bit more time. I'm sure they-"

"Just drop it," Aishu cut in. "I don't want to hear about it anymore. Anyways, you're the last person who should be giving me advice about hiding things."

"What do you mean?" Hana asked, raising her brow.

"You know what I mean. You're sparring hasn't been that great either. I've seen you make stupid mistakes that the number one Pearl shouldn't be making. You're hiding something, too."

"Aishu-"

"No!" The brunette said sharply. "Don't try to get out of this conversation like you always do. There's been something bothering you for a long time now, yet I have yet to hear you mention what, and here you are telling  _me_  not to hide things."

"I wasn't aware I had to share it with you," Hana replied icily. "Technically, whatever might be bothering me is none of your business."

"Oh don't give me that!" Aishu snapped. "It _is_  my business. I should know!" She was not entirely sure where her words were coming from. Honestly, it really wasn't any of Aishu's business, but she needed to know. She hated seeing Hana so sad.

"Did it ever occur to you that you're part of the reason I have trouble focusing half the time? On top of everything else we've been doing, I'm worrying about you! You always seem so sad. Even when you're smiling, I can see some sadness and it really worries me!"

Hana was silent for a moment, her eyes widened slightly in shock at the statement.

"Ai-chan…"

"Ne, are the two lovers in a middle of a quarrel? If you're not finished, we can just leave."

Both girls turned to find Hikaru and Aiko standing behind them, both in their robes as well. With Rai working on something for the Principal, Aiko offered to spar with Hikaru for the time being.

"No," Aishu said while walking towards them, a blush on her face from Hikaru's teasing remark. "We're finished, and we're not lovers."

Hikaru giggled.

"It's okay, Aishu-chan!" Aiko said with a smile. "You guys don't have to hide it. I think it's so sweet that you guys have feelings for each other."

"Aiko-oneesama," Aishu said through gritted teeth. "There are  _no_  feelings."

Aiko giggled at the sight, but decided to end her teasing, changing the subject instead.

"I'm actually surprised to still see you here, Aishu-chan. I thought you'd be with your parents seeing that today is-"

"Don't say it," Aishu cut in, stopping the other before she could finish her sentence. "I'm sorry, Aiko-Oneesama, but I really don't want to hear it."

"Don't be," Aiko said back, a little concerned. "I'm sorry if it bothered you. I didn't realize it would. I thought you would be excited for today. Have you seen your parents at all?"

"I haven't gone, no." Aishu replied.

"Well, have they come to see you?"

The girl didn't answer, her gaze falling to the ground. Normally she would be all excited for this day as she had two different things to celebrate, but she wasn't in the celebratory mood.

"Well, that's not good," Aiko told her, her brows furrowing a bit. "I figured they would have come and found you by now."

"Maybe they got busy," Hana suggested, not wanting Aishu to worry about it even more. "You know how many meetings and such that they get because of these attacks."

"True, but they shouldn't be too busy to stop and see her, especially today," the blonde said back. "They're her parents. Seeing her should have been the first thing they did, but that's just my opinion."

Aiko walked closer to Aishu and cupped her chin in her hand, holding her head up so their eyes met.

"Then again, Hana-chan may be right. Perhaps they're very busy and are trying their hardest to come see you. I'm sure once they're done with things, they'll come and find you right away."

She gave Aishu a warm smile and then turned away.

"I must be off now," she told them. "There are a few things I need to finish."

"Thank you again for sparring with me," Hikaru said with a respective bow.

"It's no problem at all," Aiko said back. "I'm glad I could help. If you ever need me more in the future, don't hesitate to ask."

When she was gone, Hikaru walked over to her best friend and reached out, gently squeezing her arm.

"Aiko-oneesama is right. I'm sure they'll come and see you as soon as they can."

Aishu simply shrugged her shoulders, not wanting to think about it anymore.

"It doesn't matter. Anyways, did you find anything before you went and sparred?"

Hikaru shook her head.

"Nothing. We're starting to run out of options."

"Don't remind me," Aishu mumbled. "I know we-"

Aishu suddenly stopped speaking, her eyes looking towards the ground.

"What was that?"

"What was what?" Hana asked.

"Didn't you guys feel that?" Aishu stood still for a moment, and soon enough, she felt it again.

"The ground," she told them. "It was shaking."

Hikaru and Hana stayed quiet to see if they could feel the quake as well.

"There!" Hikaru shouted. "I felt it, too. It-ahh!"

Another shake came, causing all three to stumble a bit.

"Oh no," Hana said, remembering back to a day where she felt something similar. "It can't be. You don't think it's-woah!"

Another quake shattered through the ground. Looking farther into the field, past where the first slave had attacked months ago, they saw the ground crack open, a creature crawling from the hole.

"A slave!" Hikaru shouted.

Aishu's mouth nearly dropped when she saw it. There hadn't been an attack at the school since April. Since then, they had only been appearing in the city of Windbloom itself.

" _Why is one back here again?_ " Aishu asked herself.

The creature itself was made of rock, four hands protruding from its sides. It was much bigger than the first one she ever saw.

"We're already in our robes!" Hikaru said. "We can try and fight it!"

Hana didn't take the time to think. Upon seeing it come closer, she immediately jumped and flew towards the slave.

"Let's go!" Hikaru shouted.

Aishu nodded and they both followed Hana into the fight. Although they couldn't fly yet, they could still jump in high enough to reach the creature, using the tails for their robes to do so.

Jumping up, Aishu latched one of her tails onto one of the rocky arms to help bring her higher. When she was high enough, she flipped in the air, swinging her staff down onto the arm.

" _Not even a crack."_

She continued the same process a few more times in different areas, but the result was always the same. Hana was faring a bit better, the Pearl able to leave marks here and there.

" _How come I can't do anything?_ " Aishu thought. " _I was able to help defeat the last one, but on this one I can't even leave a dent._ "

She pondered at what to do, an idea soon hitting her. Swinging herself back to the ground, she planted herself directly in front of the slave.

"Hikaru-chan! Come down here!" The brunette shouted. "I need you for this! Hana-oneesama, try keeping it out of our way if you can!"

Hikaru swung down and landed beside Aishu.

"Our hits aren't working so we have to try something else," she told the pink haired female. "This move will be stronger if we do this together."

Aishu then took her stance. Hikaru nodded in turn, knowing what was about to be done and followed suit with her position. Soon after, strips of blue light began glowing on their robes, causing a blue ball of light to form in their hands.

"On three," Aishu said. "One, two-"

Before they could finish however, another quake from the ground came. Looking over, both Coral's found themselves facing group of tentacles heading their direction. A second slave had joined the mix. Turning to see the two in danger, Hana panicked.

"Watch out!"

The two Coral's readied to defend, but before anything could be done, someone flew right in front of them, cutting the tentacles away.

"M-Miyu-chan!"

"Aishu!"

Aishu turned to see both of her parents flying towards them as well. Natsuki immediately flew up to help Hana while Miyu fought the second slave. Shizuru landed in front of the two younger girls.

"Run back to the building," she told them. "You'll be safe there."

"No!" Aishu said back. "We can help!"

"We can!" Hikaru added. "We-"

"You can't!" Shizuru shouted. "It's too dangerous."

"Let us help!" Aishu argued. "It's-"

"You girls are just Corals! You may be the top two Corals, but you're not trained enough to take on this kind of slave with your current robes. You may have helped defeat one once, Aishu, but that doesn't mean-"

"Mom!"

One of the rocky hands had suddenly grown longer and was close to striking Shizuru down. Aishu quickly stepped in front of the woman, her back facing the slave, and pulled her mother close. In a matter of seconds, she could feel her mark burning, and soon a familiar white light surrounded them. They shook a bit when the hand made contact with the shield, but other than that, no one was hurt.

"A-Ai-chan…" Shizuru was in shock.

Aishu looked around her, eyes wide. The shield seemed brighter than the last time it was summoned. Backing away from her mother slowly, she watched as the shield began to dissipate, and moments later, she felt something cool in her hands.

"What the-"

Looking down, her eyes widened even more. In each hand, she found herself holding a large, glowing blade.

"Dual blades," Hikaru said in shock. "Aishu, I think that's your, y-your-"

"Element," Aishu breathed.

"Coral's can't have any other element but a staff," Shizuru pointed out.

The brunette looked up at her Mother, worry, fear, and defeat in her gaze. The secret was out now, Shizuru catching on very quickly to what her daughter had been hiding.

"Your own element. A shield of light. Light..."

Shizuru's eyes widened.

"Aishu, you're the-"

"We could use a little help here!" Natsuki called. She hadn't noticed what went on down below.

Shizuru wanted to say more, but now wasn't the time. Without finishing her sentence, and with one last look at her daughter, she flew up and joined the fight.

Miyu, who had finally defeated her slave, flew quickly towards Aishu and Hikaru.

"You've materialized your element, Miss." Miyu told her. "Which means you can summon your child."

"No I can't," Aishu said back. "I don't know how."

"You must call out its name, Miss. It'll come to you then."

"Well, I know that, but I don't know its name," Aishu replied, the girl feeling a little frantic. "I can't call it if I don't know it."

"Just focus and think on it, Miss! I know you can. You just have to feel it. Feel what you felt when that shield came out. Why do you think it activated?"

"I don't know, I was just trying to protect my Mom!"

"Exactly! Why were you protecting her?"

"She was in trouble. I just didn't want to see her hurt!"

"Why though, Miss?"

Aishu's anxiety was rising, fear filling her as she watched her parents and Hana fight.

"I don't know why. I don't know!"

"You do, Miss, I know you do," Miyu told her. "Just think. Why did you protect her? Why didn't you want to see her hurt?"

"She's my family, I never want to see her hurt. She's my mom, and she's everything to me. I love her!"

It was then, at those words, did her blades glow brighter. Aishu's eyes widened when she saw this and looked back up at Miyu, the woman nodding in knowing what the girl was thinking.

"The trigger," Aishu whispered.

"Natsuki!"

The three of them turned just in time to see Natsuki take a hard blow from one of the hands. She was sent flying back towards them. It was in that moment Aishu's element disappeared and she ran out to catch her Mother. Upon impact, she flew back and hit the ground, breaking Natsuki's fall as they slid to a stop.

"Mom!"

She moved out from under Natsuki and held the woman's head, which was bleeding, on her lap. Hikaru ran to join Aishu while Miyu rejoined the fight.

"Mom, are you okay?"

Natsuki tried to move, but cringed in pain when she did.

"Mom, please," Aishu said, getting nervous. She had never seen her Mom this bad.

"You girls need to go," Natsuki finally said while looking up at the two. "I'm fine. You two head back to the school."

"No, we're staying here," Aishu replied. "We'll protect you."

"Don't. It's too dangerous. You need to get to safety."

"I'm not leaving you," Aishu said again. " _We're_  not leaving you."

"Don't be stupid!" Natsuki snapped. "I'll not have you-"

"I'm not stupid!" Aishu shouted. "Just stop!"

Something stirred inside the young female. Something new. Something different. Her mark burning more than ever now as she pulled her Mother closer to her chest.

"Ai-chan…"

Aishu could feel tears rolling down her face.

"Watch her," she finally said, her voice quiet as she spoke to Hikaru. "Please, watch her."

"I won't leave her side," her friend replied.

Aishu then stood up and stared at the slave. Her chest felt warm, that feeling surfacing in the form of a light that now surrounded her body.

"Ai-chan," Natsuki said in slight shock. "What are you…"

The girl ignored her. Her gaze was stuck on the creature and her heart was stuck on the emotions that were now swimming in her chest.

" _I'll protect you like you protect me. You've always protected me._ "

The warmth she was feeling grew by the second, the girl placing her hand over her heart as it got stronger.

" _I don't care what you say. I'm not stupid for wanting to protect you. It's never stupid, never, to protect the ones you love._ "

The warmth now hit its peak. Closing her eyes, she let it take her over completely, a single word escaping her mouth.

"Mitsuko."

Seconds later, a portal of light appeared behind her. Emerging from it was a wolf like creature, white and blue decorating its metallic skin. When it landed beside her, she turned to face it. He was smaller than the slave, but powerful. She could feel it. The wolf then turned its head and faced Aishu, his dark red eyes locked on her own. This was her Child. This was  _her_ protector.

" _Mitsuko…_ "

The two stared at each other for a few moments, the girl reaching out and placing a single finger on his nose. She could feel it. She could feel the connection.

Turning now, the Child knelt and huffed as if signaling her to climb on. Although a bit hesitant, Aishu did so, the creature then looking towards the slave, a low growl leaving his system. Reaching out, she gently pet the creature on the head. It was like they were sharing thoughts and feelings, that's how connected they were. Without even speaking, she knew what had to be done, and in knowing, she leaned in and whispered two words into his ear.

"Kill it."

Almost instantly, the wolf let out a howl and burst into a run, and the events that took place next happened so fast the girl didn't have time to process it all, everything flashing before her eyes.

"Mitsuko."

The Child jumped high into the air, higher and higher towards the sun. She could feel the heat of it against her back, but it didn't hurt. Within a few seconds, Mitsuko grew brighter and brighter until its entire body was glowing white. He then took a deep breath, and as he did, Aishu heard a beeping sound from her earring. Something new was coursing through her, something she had never felt before and could not explain it.

After a few moments, Mitsuko exhaled his breath with a howl, sending a giant ball of white light down to the slave below. Aishu watched in silence as the light hit the enemy, causing it to explode into a thousand pieces. The deed was done. The evil gone.

"Mitsuko," she whispered, her world now suddenly becoming silent. She couldn't explain what she was feeling or what was happening. Everything was still proceeding so quickly. She did notice, however, that her Child had gone and was no longer beneath her. She was falling, her robe disappearing as it did. Her body felt weak, the cold wind stinging her skin as she fell.

" _Is everyone okay? Are they safe?_ "

Mid worry, she felt a pair of arms wrap around her, her savior cradling her like a baby,

"Miyu-chan," she managed to whispered before everything went black.


	10. Chapter 10

Prologue

The clock in the hallway struck twelve, its monotone gong echoing throughout the mansion. It was at this time a single man entered the dim-lit area, treading across the carpeted floors at a brisk pace. Although his grey hair was disheveled, his eyes blood-shot, and his body in a somewhat unhealthy condition, there was a look of success upon his face.

"It's done. It's done," he said to no one, holding his cupped hands close to his chest. After months and months of research and testing, he had finally reached his goal, only one obstacle standing in the way of its full completion.

_Knock knock_

Arriving at his destination, he waited eagerly in front of the large oak door, his anticipation and excitement growing as time passed. He only had to wait for a few more moments before hearing what he wanted to.

"Come in."

Now opening the door, he wasted no time in stepping inside and closing it behind him.

"I've done it."

The figure, who had been looking out through a large glass window at the night sky, slowly turned, now facing the other with a mild look of interest.

"My lady, " he addressed her with a bow.

At first, she said nothing, her dark eyes flickering to his cupped hands, but as they moved upwards to meet his gaze, a smirk, a dark and conniving one at that, grew upon her face.

"Are you sure this time?" She asked, a hint of dark humor in her voice. "I've heard these words from you in the past only to see failure before my eyes."

"My lady," he said again. "I promise you I have."

Though this girl was only fifteen years of age, her power in this household was great. One wrong word or move and one could easily be disposed of in a heartbeat. "I deeply regret having wasted your time on my past failures, but I can fully assure you this is it."

She merely raised her eyebrow at this.

"Have you tested it?"

"I have," he answered. "Two of the prisoners battled, and the outcome was simply amazing! They are ten times stronger than the previous ones used. Look here."

He walked over to the desk and held out his hands, placing down a medium sized red gem.

"I see you've changed the color from its once obsidian state."

"Yes. A reaction due to a new chemical added," he replied. "We no longer need an Otome who has given birth. Previous data has allowed me to find a way around it. My lady, you must believe me when I say that this has been the most successful test I have ever witnessed. Both slaves fought to the death, their strength and movements, as I said before, much stronger than the old slaves. However, though much stronger, I don't believe they have the power to fully defeat a Meister Otome."

Sitting down, she leaned back in her black, leather chair, eyes still fixed on the gleaming item.

"Perhaps not alone, but if we make enough, we may have the ability to over power and defeat them. How many are ready?"

"Only four. It does take a while to settle and form. Getting enough ingredients needed to make this new chemical will take some time, and then once it's made, it needs time to harden. That could take a good month or so. This was one of the downfalls of not making them the traditional way."

"Time, my friend, is still a necessity for us all right now," she told him. "We can use this extra time to our advantage. The day will come where we will truly need to fight, and on that day, we will need many of these crystals, but until then, a few will do. They will merely serve as a distraction to Garderobe while we continue our search."

"I understand," he nodded. "Do tell me, how  _has_  that search been coming?"

"Not well," she said lowly. "They have all come up empty handed. It's quite annoying actually, but we will continue nonetheless."

With a sigh, she turned away, the back of her chair now facing the man.

"Before you make anymore, I would like to witness a battle myself tomorrow morning. You better be right. Is that understood?"

"Yes, my lady."

"Good. Now leave."

Without a single word, he did so, disappearing back into the hallway and leaving the girl to her solitude.

"I can feel you…"

She reached up her hand and placed it on her shoulder, rubbing it gently.

"You're near. I know it. I will find you, and when I do, your time will come to an end. This time we will not fail. This time, you will be the ones defeated."


End file.
